J'JV) ' 


ce 

03 


WS/A 


FREEMASONRY 


IN    THE 


HOLY  LAND. 


OB, 


EMBRACING 


NOTES  MADE  DURING  A  SERIES  OF  MASONIC   RESEARCHES, 

IN  1868,  IN  ASIA   MINOR,  SYRIA,  PALESTINE,  EGYPT 

AND   EUROPE,  AND   THE  RESULTS  OP  MUCH 

CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  FREEMAfcuNS 

IN  THOSE  COUNTRIES. 


BY 

ROBERT  MORRIS,  LL.D., 

MASONIC    WRITER   AND   LECTURER. 


"  Thus  snith  the  LORD.  Stand  ye  in  the  ways  and  see,  and  ask  for  the  old  paths  where  ii 
the  good  way,  and  walk  therein."— JEREMIAH  vi.  1(5. 

"Forasmuch  as  many  have  taken  in  hand  to  set  forth  a  declaration  of  those  thing* 
which  are  moet  surely  believed  amon<r  us,  it  seemed  eood  to  me  also  to  write  that  thou 
mightest  know  the  coi'ainly  of  those  things  wherein  thou  hast  been  instructed."— LUKE  i.  1-2, 


TENTH   EDITION. 


CHICAGO: 
PUBLISHED  FOR  THE  AUTHOR. 

KNIGHT  &  LEONARD,   PRINTERS, 

Nos.  105-109  MADISON  STREET. 
1876. 


TO  y 

HIS    EXCELLENCY    MOHAMMED     RASCHID, 
« 

PASHA-GENERAL    OP    SYRIA. 
HONORED    SIR    AND    BROTHER: 

IN  my  first  interview  with  the  zealous  band  of  Freemasons,  lovingly 
at  labor  in  their  foyer  maponnique  at  Smyrna,  it  was  reported  to  me 
that  the  Governor-General  of  Syria  and  Palestine,  the  brave,  wise,  and 
learned  MOHAMMED  RASCHID,  is  one  who  delights  to  wear  the  Ma- 
sonic apron,  having  shared  joyfully  in  the  mystic  confidences  of  their 
fraternal  group.  And  the  brethren  at  Smyrna  rejoiced  to  speak  of 
the  intelligence,  urbanity,  and  Masonic  skill  of  their  renowned  brother 
at  Damascus,  and  favored  me  with  letters  of  credence  and  introduction. 

Early  upon  my  arrival  in  Damascus,  therefore,  I  hastened  to  pay 
my  respects  to  your  Excellency,  and  to  present  you  the  greetings  of  a 
half-million  American  Masons,  who  are  working  (in  more  than  six 
thousand  lodges)  the  same  principles  of  Divine  truth,  justice,  and 
fraternity  in  which  you,  yourself,  were  inducted  in  your  Masonic 
initiation  at  Smyrna.  At  the  same  time  I  laid  before  your  Excel- 
lency the  peculiar  mission  upon  which  I  had  embarked,  and  solicited 
your  valued  approval  and  patronage. 

I  have  now  to  acknowledge  the  very  hearty  manner  in  which  your 
Excellency  responded  to  my  request;  you  afforded  me  the  wisest 
counsel,  and  extended  to  me  such  aid  as  none  can  give  so  effectually 
as  yourself. 

Finally,  when  tne  plan  of  the  present  volume  was  matured,  and  I 
solicited,  by  letter,  the  honor  of  dedicating  it  to  him  to  whom  I  am 
BO  much  indebted,  your  Excellency  granted  me  the  favor,  with  an 
urbanity  which  is  in  keeping  with  all  I  had  previously  known  and 
enjoyed  of  your  character. 


4  DEDICATION. 

Since  my  return  home,  I  have  spoken  in  more  than  six  hundred 
lodges,  and  reported  to  them  the  results  of  my  Oriental  study  and 
labor.  Everywhere  I  have  made  grateful  mention  of  our  distinguished 
Brother,  the  Vali  of  Syria;  of  his  bravery  in  war,  his  wisdom  in  coun- 
cil, the  respect  and  love  of  his  people,  and  particularly  his  kindness 
to  the  American  brother  who  had  journeyed  so  far  in  pursuit  of 
Masonic  light  Should  you,  at  any  period,  honor  our  country  with  a 
visit,  your  Excellency  will  find  that  this  story  of  your  kindness  to  the 
strange  brother  has  come  here  before  you ;  that  the  lineaments  of 
your  countenance  are  well  known  to  us,  and  that  a  welcome  awaits 
you,  such  as  but  few  visitors  have  ever  received  from  the  Masonic 
fraternity.  Would  that  your  Excellency  might  so  favor  us !  Would 
that  the  mother-land  of  Freemasonry  might  send  such  a  representa-* 
live  to  this  great  asylum  of  freedom,  where  the  principles  of  the 
ancient  <>rder  have  unrestricted  sway,  and  every^nun  feels  that  in  his 
birth  he  is  the  equal  of  every  other! 

May  it  please  your  Excellency:  Our  earthly  lot  differs  most  widely. 
Your  name  is  spread  afar  as  one  to  whom  God  has  intrusted  the  gov- 
ernment of  a  people.  Our  forms  of  faith  are  diverse.  In  language, 
customs,  and  modes  of  thought,  we  are  cast  in  different  moulds ;  but 
in  Masonic  UNITY  we  are  one,  and  one  in  Masonic  FAITH.  As  our 
hopes,  and  aims,  and  labors  are  one,  we,  trusting  in  one  God,  and 
doing,  each  of  us,  what  we  believe  to  be  His  expressed  will,  do  hum- 
bly expect  a  common  reward  when  we  have  passed  that  common  lot 
which  none  can  escape,  To  the  Divine  power,  therefore,  I  tenderly 
commend  your  Excellency,  both  for  this  world  and  for  that  which  is 
to  come. 

TO    H.  E.  MOHAMMED   RASCHID 

This  book,  FrHmatonry  in  the  Holy  Land,  is,  by  permission,  most 
respectfully  and  most  fraternally 

DEDICATED 


PREFACE. 


1  OFFER  this  book  to  the  Masonic  public,  in  redemption  of  my 
pledges  to  the  generous  friends  who  furnished  me  the  means  both  for 
my  expedition  of  h86S,  and  for  publishing  the  book  itself.  That  I 
have  been  more  than  three  years  getting  it  up,  speaks,  I  think,  for  the 
thorough  manner  of  its  preparation. 

Agreeably  to  original  promise,  "  the  book  is  adapted  to  the  plainest 
reader ;  one  that  the  owner  will  take  home  and  read  in  his  domestic 
circle,  and  afterwards  lend  to  his  neighbors  to  read ;  equally  a  reference- 
book  to  the  student,  and  a  hand-book  to  the  traveller ;  large  enough 
to  embrace  so  great  a  subject,  yet  no  effort  has  been  spared  to  compress 
the  information.  The  Common  Gavel  has  been  used  remorselessly  in 
striking  off  excrescences.  Written  in  the  spirit  of  the  Holy  Writings, 
French  and  German  infidelity  has  not  made  sufficient  inroads  into 
American  Masonry,  that  less  than  nineteen-twentieths  will  welcome 
additional  light  upon  the  Divine  authenticity  of  the  Bible,  and  such 
light  I  have  attempted  freely  to  diffuse  through  this  volume. 

Let  every  subscriber,  after  reading  the  book,  bear  me  testimony 
that  I  have  kept  the  faith  with  him. 

1  have  avoided  the  mysterious  and  romantic  style  so  common 
amongst  writers  upon  Palestine,  and  have  cultivated  the  colloquial. 
One  would  think,  to  read  standard  accounts  of  the  trees  and  birds 
in  the  Holy  Land,  that  they  are  different  from  birds  and  trees  in 


I  PREFACE. 

other  countries.  Not  so.  Making  allowance  for  difference  in  climate, 
nature  is  the  same  everywhere,  and  so  I  have  used  every-day  words 
in  describing  them.  I  have  embodied  as  much  practical  informa- 
tion as  possible ;  comparing  things  Oriental  with  things  Occidental ; 
things  in  the  experience  of  patriarchs  and  prophets  with  things  in  the 
experience  of  an  American  observer.  And  yet  I  have  endeavored  to 
preserve  the  gravity  and  dignity  due  to  a  theme  around  which  cluster 
all  our  hopes  in  life,  in  death,  and  in  the  world  to  come. 

In  the  abundance  of  my  preparations,  and  the  acreage  of  my  read- 
ings-up  for  this  book,  I  have  not  unfrequently  mingled  others' 
thoughts  with  my  own,  and  have  entered  them  here  often  without 
special  credit  In  defence  of  this  I  can  only  say  that  such  is  the 
general  usage  of  writers.  If  the  reader,  then,  finds  passages  the  prop- 
erty of  other  persons,  he  is  at  liberty  to  say  so ;  I  will  not  deny  it ; 
but,  with  the  historian  Rollin,  I  confess  "that  I  do  not  scruple, 
nor  am  ashamed,  to  borrow  that  I  may  adorn  and  enrich  my  own  his- 
My  own  credit,  if  any,  shall  consist  in  the  skill  with  which  I 
bind  the  beads  of  the  chain  together.  In  the  thousands  of  notes  and 
memorandums  I  have  taken,  it  would  be  strange,  indeed,  if  I  could 
preserve  the  ear-marks  of  each. 

In  this  book  I  have  desired  to  popularize  the  study  of  the  Scrip- 
tures, by  removing  some  of  the  difficulties  which  the  unlearned  have 
fonnd  in  reading  them ;  by  smoothing  the  way  to  obscure  passages,  so 
at  to  enable  all  to  peruse  the  Sacred  Book  understandingly,  and  bet- 

r  to  enjoy  sermons  and  commentaries.    Had  the  hundreds  of  thou- 

J  who  make  up  the  membership  of  our  lodges  this  practical  knowl- 

5,  how  easy  the  teacher's  task,  in  the  coming  generation,  to  diffuse 

re  of  useful  knowledge  there  is  for  mankind  in  this  world ! 

'f  any  object  to  the  allusions  and  comparisons  to  American  mat- 
ters,  so  freely  introduced  through  these  pages,  let  me  confess,  old  and 


PBEFACE.  7 

cosmopolitan  as  I  am,  that  patriot  fumus  igne  alieno  luculentior — the 
rery  smoke  of  my  own  native  land  seems  brighter  to  me  than  the 
fire  of  any  other.  I  trust,  however,  I  have  not  exhibited  this  senti- 
ment anywhere  offensively. 

As  the  narrative  of  Arculfe  Pilgrimage  to  Palestine,  in  the  eighth 
century,  led  to  that  passion  for  pilgrimage  which  has  not  yet  died 
out,  but  has  made  the  nineteenth  the  most  illustrious  century  of  all, 
so  I  earnestly  hope  the  publication  of  this  book,  the  first  of  its  class, 
will  inspire  many  a  zealous  tourist  to  visit  those  countries  on  Masonic 
errands,  and  many  a  penman  in  his  closet  to  enlarge  the  literature  of 
which  I  now  make  the  commencement.  To  show  that  the  web  and 
woof  of  Masonic  tradition  are  true,  is,  by  an  easy  transition,  to  prove 
the  figures  of  the  pattern  real  and  genuine. 

In  writing  'Arabic  words  I  have  endeavored,  in  general,  to  give  such 
English  letters  as  will  express  them  to  the  ear  rather  than  the  eye. 
For  instance :  instead  of  harem  I  write  liareem,  &c.  Yet  this  rule  is 
but  imperfectly  carried  out,  after  all ;  for  were  I  to  adopt  it  rigidly, 
Sultan  would  be  Sooltarn ;  Koran,  Korarn ;  Hassan,  Hassarn,  &c. 
If  the  reader  would  learn  the  exact  sound  of  Arabic  words  (a  thing 
I  never  did),  he  must  get  an  Arabic  dictionary  (and  then  he  can't  do 
it!) 

As  so  large  a  proportion  of  American  Masons  are  professing  Chris- 
tians—  the  demonstration  at  Baltimore,  Maryland,  September,  1871, 
proving  that  our  wisest  and  best  members  in  very  large  numbers  re- 
joice to  bear  the  symbolical  emblem  of  the  MAN  OF  GOLGOTHA  —  ] 
have  not  hesitated  frequently  "  to  name  the  name  of  Jesus  "  in  this 
volume,  although  no  one  has  so  often  and  publicly  demonstrated  thai 
Freemasonry  was  ten  centuries  old  when  the  Star  of  Bethlehem  arose. 
Nor  can  our  Jewish  brethren,  many  of  whom  have  received  a  welcome 
into  the  American  lodges,  complain  that  I  neglected  the  interests 


PREFACE. 


/ 


of  their  long-persecuted  but  now  emerging  society  while  I  was  in  the 
EMt  At  the  nine  time  I  have  fully  expressed  my  admiration  for  much 
of  the  character  and  many  of  the  precepts  of  Mohammed,  as  embodied 
in  the  Koran.  Avoiding  the  doctrinal  points,  and  read  in  the  spirit  of 
fraternal  love,  as  Ulustrated  in  the  lectures  of  Freemasonry,  that  re- 
markable book,  the  Koran,  might  justly  be  taken  as  a  comment  upon 
the  much  older,  far  wiser,  and  most  remarkable  book  ever  written, 
THI  OLD  TESTAMENT  of  the  Hebrew  dispensation.  To  those  who 
are  accustomed,  without  the  slightest  examination,  to  denounce  the 
Koran  (as  well  as  its  author),  I  will  simply  say,  with  Isaiah  (viii.  20), 
•  To  the  law  and  to  the  testimony ;  if  it  speak  not  according  to  this 
word,  it  is  because  there  is  no  light  in  it"  An  unprejudiced  mind 
will  admit,  not  only  that  the  Koran  contains  far  more  quotations 
from  and  references  to  the  Bible,  but  is  absolutely  imbued  more  with 
the  spirit  of  the  inspired  word  than  a  dozen  of  the  best  "  Saints' 
Books"  found  on  the  counter  of  any  Catholic  bookstore  in  New  York. 
"To  the  testimony!" 

In  affixing  the  names  of  my  Masonic  countrymen  freely  to  places 
renowned  in  history,  I  acknowledge,  ubique  patriam  reminisci,  that  I 
remembered  my  native  country  in  all  places,  and  have  attempted  thus 
to  join  the  West  to  the  East  by  a  new  and  more  affecting  tie.  The 
Masons  who  raised  nine  thousand  dollars  and  upwards  to  send  me  to 
Palestine,  and  enough,  three  years  afterwards,  to  publish  this  volume, 
have  earned  the  right  to  Matonic  homes  among  the  homes  of  the  first 
Maaona,  and  the  allotment  I  have  made  may  be  yet  very  much  more 
largely  extended.  Even  though  the  idea  be  one  strictly  in  the  region 
of  romance,  I  shall  be  greatly  mistaken  if  it  does  not  lead  to  larger 
explorations,  freer  offerings,  and  greater  exertions  in  this  direction  on 
the  part  of  generations  yet  to  come. 
To  Professor  A.  L  Rawson,  of  New  York,  so  well  known  as  "  The 


PREFACE.  9 

Oriental  Artist,"  who  has  given  his  pencil  exclusively,  for  a  number 
of  years,  to  Biblical  illustration,  I  am  indebted,  not  only  for  the  maps 
and  engravings  in  my  volume,  but  for  many  practical  and  useful  sug- 
gestions in  the  preparation  of  the  work  itself.  Himself  a  thorough 
explorer  in  Eastern  fields,  he  is  giving  his  mature  and  experienced 
judgment  to  such  works  as  Beecher*s,  Deems's,  Crosby's,  and  othei 
first-class  writers  on  Biblical  themes ;  his  own  excellent  "  Hand-Book 
of  Bible  Knowledge "  meanwhile  comparing  favorably  with  the  best 
of  them. 

Finally,  if  any  one  with  dyspeptic  tendencies  feels  to  object  to  the 
attempt  at  humor  that  may  possibly  be  detected  in  some  of  these 
pages,  I  bare  my  back  to  the  lash.  I  did  laugh  while  going,  without 
guard  or  guide,  through  the  once  inspiring  but  now  depressing  lands 
of  the  tribes  —  laughed  often  and  freely,  and,  even  at  the  end  of  four 
years,  my  cachinations  are  renewed  when  I  think  of  certain  expe- 
riences connected  with  my  journey.  The  ghost  of  old  laughs  thua 
haunting  me  so  long  and  persistently,  and  giving  its  spirit  to  my  ink, 
the  reader  is  at  liberty,  without  further  dispensation,  tc  laugh  too. 


THE  LAND  OP  MILK    AND   HONEY. 

-A  good  land  and  a  large  ...  a  land  flowing  with  milk  and 
honey."  (Dent  vl  3,  xi.  9,  etc.) 


*re! 


£  theTadow  of  a  peat  rock  falls  upon  a  weary  land. 

The  dew  of  Sermon  falling  yet,  revives  the  Bolder  i  days  ; 
Sweet  Sharon  lends  her  roses  still,  to  win  the  poet  s  lays  , 
In  every  vale  the  lily  bends,  while  o'er  them  wing  the  birds 
Whose  cheerful  notes  so  marvellously  recall  the  Saviours  words. 


From  Bethlehem  awake  the  songs  of  Rachel  and  of  J^h, 
From  Mizpah's  mountain-fastness  mournfulnotesol  tiiial  trutn  ; 
Magdala  gives  narration  of  the  Penitent  thrice-blest, 
And  Bethany  of  sister-hosts  who  loved  the  gentle  Guest 

Would  we  retrace  the  pilgrimage  of  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord, 
Behold  his  footsteps  everywhere,  on  rocky  knoll  and  sward  ; 
From  Bethlehem  to  Golgotha,  his  cradle  and  his  tomb, 
He  sanctified  old  Canaan  and  accepted  it  his  home. 

He  praved  upon  thy  mountain-side,  he  rested  in  thy  grove, 
He  walked  upon  thy  Galilee,  when  winds  with  billows  strove: 
Thy  land  was  full  of  happy  homes,  that  loving  hearts  did  own, 
E'en  foxes  and  the  birds  of  air  —  but  Jesus  Christ  had  none. 

Thou  land  of  milk  and  honey,  land  of  corn  and  oil  and  wine, 
How  longs  my  hungry  spirit  to  enjoy  thy  food  divine! 
1  hunger  and  I  thirst  afar,  the  Jordan  rolls  between, 
I  faintly  see  thy  paradise  all  clothed  in  living  green. 

My  day  of  life  declineth,  and  my  sun  is  sinking  low  ; 
I  near  the  banks  of  Jordan,  through  whose  waters  I  must  go  : 
Oh,  let  me  wake  beyond  the  stream,  in  land  celestial  blest, 
To  be  forever  with  the  Lord  in  Canaan's  promised  rest 


DIVISION  FIRST-FACING  THE  EAST. 


Whatsoever  thy  hand  findeth  to  do,  do  it  with  thy  might;  for  there  is  ne 
work,  nor  device,  nor  knowledge,  nor  wisdom,  in  tlie  grave,  whither  thou  goest 
—Eccles.  ix.  10. 

Examine  the  condition  of  the  Masonic  institution,  in  the  land  of  its  nativity. 

Observe  those  unaltered  customs  of  the  Orientals,  whose  types  are  preserved 
in  the  rituals  of  our  lodges. 

Inspect  the  traditional  sites  of  Tyre,  Gebal,  Lebanon,  Joppa,  Succoth,  Jeru- 
salem, etc. 

Collect  relics  of  ancient  days  and  specimens  of  the  natural  produetions  of  th« 
land. — Number^  xiii.  21 


COIN  OF  JERUSALEM  :   SHEKEL. 


CHAPTER  L 

CONCEPTION   AND   PREPARATIONS. 

VT2BY  one  who  has  undertaken  to  instruct  Freemasons, 
must  many  times  have  yearned  to  visit  Palestine,  the 
mother-land  of  ancient  affiliations,— the  Orient, — the  home 
of  Abraham  and  David,— of  Solomon  and  Zerubbabel, — of 
Jesus  and  Mohammed, — the  School  of  the  Sacred  Writings. 
So  many  references  to  that  country  are  contained  in  the  Masonic 
rituals,  it  is  a  marvel  that  no  one  of  us  had  made  explorations  there 
prior  to  1868. 

In  common  with  my  fellows  in  Masonic  work,  I  had  keenly  ex- 
perienced the  Crusader's  impulse  "  to  precipitate  myself  upon  the 
Syrian  shore ; "  and  often  cast  about  me  for  the  means  to  gratify  the 
yearning.  In  the  autumn  of  1854, 1  came  so  near  accomplishing 
this  wish, 'that,  by  the  favor  of  a  loan  of  $1,000  from  the  Grand 
Lodge  of  Kentucky,  joined  to  the  liberality  of  other  friends,  I  reached 
New  York,  having  my  face  earnestly  "set  towards  Jerusalem." 
But  here  an  unlucky  accident  frustrated  my  hopes,  and  turned  me 
back  to  the  Occident  Fire,  which  has  so  often  proved  my  foe,  con- 
sumed the  Judson  House,  in  which  I  was  a  lodger,  and  by  destroying 
my  papers  and  clothing,  etc.,  so  disarranged  the  scheme,  that  I  could 
not  carry  it  out  successfully  at  that  time. 

Yet,  for  all  that,  though  advancing  years,  and  the  res  angustcB  in 
dorni,  the  hard  realities  of  life,  interposed  with  a  purpose  almost  in- 
exorable, I  never  once  resigned  my  determination  to  go  to  Palestine, 
bnt  always  in  my  Masonic  descriptions  spoke  of  "  those  traditional 
localities  which  some  day  I  am  resolved  to  visit."  In  the  mean- 
time, I  continued  the  practice,  established  long  before,  of  reading 
whatever  publications  promised  to  shed  light  upon  the  Lands  of  the 
East;  and  in  church,  Sunday-school,  and  elsewhere,  lectured  on  the 
)ject  with  a  minuteness  of  detail  that  compelled  me  to  study  the 
theme  in  its  various  historical  and  scientific  associations.  This,  in 
fact,  served  to  educate  me  against  the  time  when  it  might  please  the 


CONCEPTION   AND    PBEPABATIONS.  13 

(j.  A.  0.  T.  U.  to  grant  me  a  furlough  for  the  Oriental  tour.  In  pur- 
chases of  books  for  my  Masonic  collections,  I  gave  prominence  to 
those  upon  Oriental  matters,  as  my  old  library,  now  in  the  keeping 
of  the  Grand  Lodge  of  New  York,  will  show.  In  brief,  I  sought  to 
emulate  the  spirit  of  old  Thomas  a  Kempis  in  his  saying,  homo  fer- 
vidus  et  diligens  ad  omnia  paratur — the  earnest  and  diligent  man 
is  prepared  for  all  things — and  in  the  meantime  found  comfort  in  the 
promise  of  Virgil : 

Forsan  et  hcec  olim  meminisse  juvabit ; 
Durate  et  vosmet  rebus  servate  secundis  ; 

It  may  possibly  be  joyful  some  day  to  recall  these  trials ;  bear  up 
against  them,  therefore,  and  be  ready  for  better  times  when  they  come. 

In  1867,  circumstances  proved  somewhat  encouraging  to  the  ful- 
fillment of  my  purpose.  The  opening  of  various  lines  of  steamships 
from  Europe  to  the  Syrian  coast  was  a  favorable  incident.  The  en- 
larged privileges  granted  by  the  Turkish  government  to  foreigners 
sojourning  in  the  Holy  Land  enabled  a  person  in  1868  to  explore 
twentyfold  more  than  he  could  have  done  in  1858,  and  fortyfold 
more  than  in  1848.  The  publication  of  scores  and  hundreds  of 
books  of  travel  in  Palestine  obviates  the  necessity  of  a  man's  wast- 
ing time  in  merely  playing  the  tourist,  and  justifies  me  in  be- 
ginning, the  moment  of  arrival,  the  work  of  exploration.  The 
invaluable  aids  aiforded  the  Bible  student  by  such  publications  as 
Eobinson's,  Barclay's,  Thomson's,  etc.,  are  so  much  more  than  mere 
books  of  travel,  that  the  reader  may  in  effect  transport  himself,  by 
their  assistance,  to  the  Land  of  the  Bible,  being  enabled  to  see  with 
their  eyes  and  hear  with  their  ears  whatever  is  needed  to  illuminate 
the  sacred  pages.  In  my  domestic  circle,  the  growing  up  of  the 
younger  members  of  my  family,  and  the  marriage  of  the  elder,  ren- 
dered father's  presence  at  home  less  a  matter  of  necessity  than  here- 
tofore. 

One  thing  more :  my  labors  in  the  various  departments  of  Masonic 
history,  rituals,  poetry,  etc.,  seemed  measurably  terminated.  Having 
no  money-capital  of  my  own  for  purposes  of  publication,  and  the 
fields  of  Masonic  literature  affording  little  profit  to  authorship,  I 
felt  that  in  the  issuance  of  seventy-four  Masonic  publications  I  had 
given  sufficient  evidence  of  my  devotion  to  the  old  institution,  and 
might  justly  claim  exemption  from  further  labors  and  losses  in  that 
direction,  and  enter  upon  a  new  field.  Finally,  a  reasonably  vigorous 
constitution,  never  impaired  by  excessive  living  or  intemperance, 


M  CONCEPTION  AND   PREPARATIONS. 

.on*  knowledge  of  the  Scriptures  in  their  original  and  translated 
forms,  a  large  course  of  reading  in  matters  relating  to  Oriental  coun- 
tries, a  circle  of  Masonic  friends  reaching  round  the  globe,  and  a 
.trongvM  to  execute  whatever  I  undertook-these  formed  the  en- 
couragements that  bore  me  out,  at  the  age  of  fifty,  to  begin  the  ser- 
rice  of  Masonic  exploration  of  the  Holy  Land,  conceived  BO  many 
years  ago,  of  which  the  present  volume  is  the  record. 

But  how  a  Masonic  exploration  ?  What  has  the  Masonic  institu- 
tion to  do  with  the  Holy  Land  ?  These  are  no  questions  for  Free- 
masons to  ask ;  but  as  my  work  will  fall  into  the  hands  of,  and  per- 
haps be  read  by,  those  who  are  not  of  the  "mystic  tie,"  the  query 
may  properly  be  answered  here.  I  respond,  then,  that  the  Holy 
Scriptures  are  the  instruction  books  of  the  Lodge ;  and  that  a  perfect 
knowledge  of  the  Holy  Land  is  needful  to  a  perfect  knowledge  of  the 
Holy  Scriptures. 

In  1867,  then,  I  set  upon  the  following  plan  to  secure  the  necessary 
funds  for  my  enterprise ;  I  made  up  a  list  of  Holy  Land  specimens, 
•uch  as  the  fraternity  were  most  likely  to  value — such  as  /  should 
most  value, — in  the  way  of  Biblical  and  Masonic  illustrations,  a  cata- 
logue embracing  specimens  of  the  woods,  waters,  earths,  coins,  fossils, 
etc^  from  Palestine,  and  proposed  to  supply  them,  at  a  specified  rate, 
to  those  who  would  advance  me  money  for  the  pilgrimage.  The  fol- 
lowing extracts  from  my  published  proposals  belong  to  the  history 
of  this  enterprise: 

41  Those  contributors  who  advance  ten  dollars,  each  shall  be  supplied 
with  one  hundred  and  fifty  obiects  from  the  Holy  Land,  including 
specimens  of  the  ancient  building-stone  of  Jerusalem,  Joppa,  and 
Tyre;  shells  from  the  Sea  of  Galilee  and  Joppa;  agates  from  the 
Arabian  deserts ;  ancient  coins ;  rock-salt  from  Usdum ;  an  herba- 
rium of  ten  plants ;  the  traditional  corn,  wine,  and  oil  of  Masonry ; 
earth  from  the  clay-grounds  near  Succoth,  etc.,  etc." 

Contributors  of  five  dollars,  three  dollars,  and  two  dollars,  respec- 
tively, were  promised  smaller  cabinets  composed  of  similar  objects ; 
:hose  of  one  dollar,  the  Journal  of  the  Expedition.    A  map  of  the 
[oly  Land,  arranged  for  Masonic  purposes,  was  also  a  portion  of  the 
premiums  promised. 

Having  decided  upon  the  plan  of  appeal,  I  visited  one  hundred 

irty  lodges  in  Indiana,  Iowa,  Kentucky,  Illinois,  West  Virginia, 

araska,  anl  New  York,  and  addressed  the  fraternity.    I  began  by 

copying  an  hour  or  two  with  recitations  of  Masonic  poems,  such 


CONCEPTION   AND   PREPARATIONS. 

as  the  Level  and  the  Square,  the  Letter  G-.,  the  Holy  Bible,  0uF 
Vows,  the  Drunkard's  Grave,  the  Five  Points  of  Fellowship,  the  Em- 
blems of  the  Craft,  etc.,  and  then  laid  before  them  my  propositions 
for  a  Masonic  mission  to  the  Holy  Land.  In  general,  the  offer  was 
favorably  responded  to.  The  'season,  unfortunately,  was  one  of  extreme 
closeness  in  the  money  market,  and  portions  of  the  country  visited 
were  suffering  from  scanty  harvests.  Some  of  my  hearers  probably 
deemed  my  proposals  Quixotic ;  many  others  contributed  the  lowest 
amount  asked  for,  viz.,  one  dollar  ;  yet  nearly  four  hundred  of  them 
gave  me  ten  dollars  each,  trusting,  as  they  said,  to  my  pluck  to  ac- 
complish the  end  proposed,  or  willing  to  show  their  respect  for  an 
old  and  industrious  laborer,  who  came  before  them  with  an  appeal 
so  reasonable  and  practical. 

The  whole  number  of  contributors  was  3,782 ;  the  aggregate  of 
contributions  was  $9,631.  Out  of  this,  according  to  my  proposals, 
provision  was  made  for  two  years'  support  of  my  family;  my  own 
expenses,  and  those  of  my  agent,  Mr.  G.  W.  Bartlett,  while  collecting 
the  money ;  the  expenses  of  the  Oriental  tour,  for  myself  and  Mr. 
Thomson ;  freights  upon  shipments  of  specimens ;  printing  six  issues 
of  the  Holy  Land  Journal  for  3,782  contributors;  printing  cata- 
logues, etc. ;  and  preparing,  labelling,  packing,  and  forwarding  nearly 
70,000  specimens.  It  can  readily  be  seen  that  the  amount  advanced 
me  was  short  of  my  needs ;  the  deficit,  in  fact,  exceeded  $1,200,  and 
this  I  was  compelled  to  make  up  out  of  the  proceeds  of  lectures  on 
my  return  home. 

It  is  in  evidence  of  the  practicability  of  the  plan  upon  which  this 
money  was  collected,  that  a  noted  traveller  is  now  (1872)  before  the 
public  with  proposals,  borrowed  from  my  programme,  to  furnish  objects 
of  natural  history  on  South  America  "  to  those  who  will  advance 
him  the  necessary  outfit  for  the  journey  to  that  country."  By  way 
of  encouragement,  I  commend  to  him  the  adage  of  Periander  of 
Corinth,  one  of  "  the  Seven  Wise  Men  "  of  antiquity ;  industries  nil 
impossibile,  anything  can  be  accomplished  by  an  industrious  man  ! 

In  my  addresses  to  the  Lodges  I  proposed — 

1.  To  explore  that  remarkable  plain  —  once  the  centre  of  intellec- 
tual light  and  the  school  of  the  seven  liberal  arts  and  sciences,  also 
of  commerce,  religion,  and  letters  —  the  Plain  of  Phcsnicia. 

2.  To  visit  the  secluded  recesses,  high  among  the  Lebanons,  where 
the  remaining  groves  of  cedar  are  found. 

3.  To  search  for  those  caves  and  bays  at  the  base  of  Lebanon  where 
the  "  flotes  "  of  timber  were  made  up  for  shipment  to  Joppa. 


1(J  CONCEPTION  AND  PREPARATIONS. 

4.  To  sail  down  the  coast  to  Joppa,  in  the  track  of  Hiram's  mari- 

5.  To  examine  the  ancient  port  of  Joppa  with  systematic  care. 

6.  To  follow  diligently  upon  the  tracks  of  the  Syrian  architects, 
journeying  from  Joppa  to  Jerusalem ;  and  to  seek  for  the  highway 
by  which  they  penetrated  the  precipitous  cliffs  and  bore  upward 
tneir  ponderous  burdens. 

7.  To  make  thorough  inspection  of  everything  relating  to  Solo- 
monic times,  in  and  about  Jerusalem. 

8.  To  visit  the  plain  of  Jordan,  especially  the  clay-ground  between 
Succoth  and  Zarthan,  where  the  brazen  pillars  and  other  holy  vessels 
appertaining  to  the  Temple  were  cast 

9.  To  explore  the  places  named  in  Masonic  lectures,  such  as  Jeru- 
salem, Bethlehem,  Sodom,  Jericho,  Bethel,  Hattin,  Damascus,  Bethany, 
Joppa,  Tyre,  Gebal,  Lebanon,  and  others. 

10.  To  make  full  collections  of  objects  illustrating  Masonic  tradi- 
tions and  Biblical  customs,  these  to  be  distributed  generously  to  con- 
tributors on  my  return,  upon  plans  previously  arranged. 

The  following  cuts  of  my  Masonic  flag  are  appropriate  here : 


The  idea  of  this  was  suggested  by  the  flag  used  in  Dr.  Kane's  Arc- 

ixplorahons  of  1853.    His  banner,  the  square  and  compass,  still 

the  archives  of  Kane  Lodge,  No.  454,  New  York  City, 

Iwplayedat  his  masthead  while  passing  down  New  York  Bay, 

the  extreme  northern  termination  of  his  journey,  it  was  set 

up  in  the  mow-drifts. 

ThiB  little  flag  of  mine  accompanied  me  through  all  my  wander- 


CONCEPTION   AND   PREPARATIONS.  17 

whose  name  was  adored  equally  in  Phoenician  and  Jewish  Lodges ;  on 
the  other,  the  architect-symbol  of  him  whose  noble  end  dignifies  the 
purpose  and  the  work  of  every  Mason's  Lodge.  Fastened  upon  the 
boughs  of  one  of  Lebanon's  grandest  cedars,  it  suggested  a  myste- 
rious meaning  to  the  sturdy  limbs  and  evergreen  foliage  of  the 
tree.  Waved  before  the  entrance  of  a  rock-hewn  tomb  at  Gebal,  it 
seemed  to  call  around  me  the  spirits  of  those  who,  three  thousand 
years  ago,  well  understood  its  symbolical  lessons.  Fluttered  in  the 
gale  that  lifts  the  waters  over  the  rocky  ledge  at  Joppa,  it  recalled  the 
days  when  the  great  fleets  of  Tyre  came,  "  like  doves  to  the  windows," 
deep-laden,  into  this  harbor,  the  square  and  compass  on  their  foresails. 
Fluttered  over  the  walls  of  Jerusalem,  and  in  the  deep  quarry  that 
underlies  the  city,  it  spoke  in  prophetic  tones  of  the  good  time  com- 
ing, when  the  Mason-craft  shall  yet  build  up  Jerusalem,  and  the  GOD 
we  worship  be  worshipped  there  and  everywhere. 

The  course  pursued  by  the  various  Masonic  journals  in  regard  to 
this  enterprise  was  almost  uniformly  generous  in  the  extreme.  Their 
columns  were  freely  thrown  open  to  my  propositions ;  their  editorial 
pens  shaped  words  of  encouragement  and  good  counsel.  It  will  not 
be  deemed  invidious  if  I  mention  by  name  the  Evergreen  (Dubuque, 
Iowa) ;  the  Masonic  Review  (Cincinnati,  0.) ;  the  Voice  of  Masonry 
(Chicago,  Illinois) ;  the  National  Freemason  (New  York) ;  the  Ma- 
sonic Monthly  (Boston,  Mass.) ;  the  Dispatch  (New  York),  and  the 
Freemason's  Monthly  Magazine  (London,  England),  as  taking  the  lead 
in  brotherly  encouragement  and  approval.  Even  Brother  Findel,  the 
German  Masonic  historian,  whose  theory  of  a  modern  origin  of 
Freemasonry  "  does  not  recognize  the  importance  of  light  from  the 
East,"  still  gave  me  "the  brotherly  word,"  and  pledged  me  a  cordial 
greeting  in  his  own  country.  How  truly  has  Sallust  said :  idem  veils, 
et  idem  nolle  ea  demum  firma  amicitia  est;  to  possess  the  same  likes 
and  dislikes  is,  in  point  of  fact,  the  foundation  of  lasting  friendship. 
No  words  of  mine  can  express  my  sense  of  all  this  kindness,  and  the 
friends  of  the  Masonic  Holy  Land  Mission  of  1868  should  bear  in 
mind,  what  my  own  experience  warned  me  of  at  the  time,  that  an 
active  opposition  from  either  of  those  influential  organs  of  Masonic 
sentiment  might  greatly  have  retarded  the  entire  scheme. 

No  official  expression  was  asked  for  from  Grand  Lodges,  or  other 
Masonic  organizations ;  but  it  is  proper  to  say  that  among  the  most 
generous  supporters  of  my  explorations  were  the  Grand  Masters  of 
Iowa  (.Reuben  Mickle) ;  Nebraska  (0.  H.  Irish) ;  Minnesota  (C.  W 

2 


[0  CONCEPTION  AND   PREPARATIONS. 

Naah) ;  New  York  (S.  H.  Johnson) ;  Canada  (Wm.  M.  Wilson),  and 
a  Urge  number  of  present  and  past  Grand  Lodge  officers,  of  the  first 
eminence,  who  forwarded  me  good  words  and  material  aid. 

An  assistant  being  deemed  desirable,  D.  W.  Thomson,  of  Illinois, 
formerly  Grand  Lecturer  of  that  State,  and  a  singularly  zealous  ad- 
rocate  of  Ancient  Craft  Masonry,  was  accepted  in  that  capacity.  In 
the  matter  of  collecting  specimens,  his  Cervices  were  of  great  utility; 
while  hi*  travelling  experience,  industry,  and  uniform  good-nature  and 
honesty  rendered  him  an  agreeable  companion  upon  the  journey. 

Prior  to  my  departure  for  New  York,  the  following  lines  were  com- 
posed and  extensively  disseminated,  as  a  farewell,  by  correspondence 
and  through  the  press : 

MIZPEH. 

They  took  stones  and  made  an  heap.  And  Laban  said :  This  heap  is  a  wit- 
ness between  me  and  thee.  Therefore  was  the  name  of  it  called  Mizpeh :  for 
he  said,  The  Lord  watch  between  me  and  thee,  when  we  are  absent  one  from 
another.— Genetu  xxxi.  46. 

MIZPEH  !  well  named  the  patriarchal  stone, 
Once  fondly  reared  in  Gilead's  mountain-pass ; 

Doubtless  the  EYE  ALL-SEEING  did  look  down 
Upon  that  token  of  fraternal  grace  : 

And  doubtless  HE  who  reconciled  those  men, 

Between  them  watched,  until  they  met  again. 

So,  looking  eastward  o'er  the  angry  sea, — 

The  wintry  blast,  inhospitably  stern,— 
Counting  the  scanty  moments  left  to  me 

Till  I  go  hence,— and  haply  not  return,— 
I  would,  oh !  Brethren,  rear  a  MIZPEH  too, 
Beseeching  GOD  to  watch  'twixt  me  and  you. 

It  was  HIS  providence  that  made  us  one, 

Who  otherwise  "  perpetual  strangers  "  were  : 
HE  joined  our  hands  in  amity  alone, 

And  caused  our  hearts  each  other's  woes  to  bear : 

kindled  in  our  souls  fraternal  fire,— 
Befitting  children  of  a  common  SIRE. 

In  mutual  labors  we  have  spent  our  life ; 
In  mutual  joy.  sported  at  labor's  close; 
h  mutual  strength  warred  against  human  etrife  • 

soothed  with  mutual  charity  its  woes  • 
Bo,  sharing  mutually  what  GOD  hath  given 
nmmon  faith  we  seek  a  kindred  Heave*. 


CONCEPTION  AND   PREPARATIONS.  19 

Bring  stones,  bring  stones,  and  build  the  heap  with  me  I 
Rear  up  a  MIZPEH,  though  with  many  tears : — 

Before  I  trust  me  to  yon  stormy  sea, 
Hither  with  memories  of  many  years  1 

Come  round  me,  mystic  Laborers,  once  more, 

With  loving  gifts,  upon  this  wintry  shore. 

Bring  Prayer :  the  WATCHEK  in  the  heavens  will  heed ; 

Bring  Types  significant  of  deathless  hope: 
Bring  Words  in  whispers  only  to  be  said  : 

Bring  Hand-grasps  strong  to  lift  the  helpless  up  : 
Bring  all  those  Reminiscences  of  light 
That  have  inspired  us  many  a  wintry  night 

Lay  them  on  MIZPEH  !  and  the  names  revered 
Of  those  who've  vanished  from  our  mystic  Band : 

Are  we  not  taught  that,  with  the  faithful  dead, 
In  Lodge  Celestial,  we  shall  surely  stand  ? 

Oh,  crown  the  pile  with  names  of  good  and  blest, 

Whose  memories  linger,  though  they  be  at  rest 

Finished:  and  so  I  hope  whate'er  betide, 

Though  wandering  far  toward  Oriental  sun, 
He  who  watched  kindly  on  that  mountain-side 

Will  watch  between  us  till  the  work  is  done  : 
LORD  GOD  ALMIGHTY  !  whence  all  blessings  are, 
Behold  our  MTZPEH  and  regard  our  prayer  1 

Be  my  defender  while  in  foreign  lands ; 

Ward  off  the  shafts  of  calumny  accurst ; 
My  labors  vindicate,  while  MIZPEH  stands, 

And  hold  my  family  in  sacred  trust ; 
Should  I  no  more  behold  them,  fond  and  dear, 
I  leave  them,  Brethren,  to  Masonic  care. 

Finally,  if  in  haste,  or  careless  mood, 

Forgetting  pledge  sealed  in  WORD  DIVINE, 

I've  wounded  any  of  the  Brotherhood, 
Impute  it  not,  this  parting  hour,  a  sin  : 

Forgive :  lo  I  HE  by  whom  all  creatures  live 

Grants  us  forgiveness,  e'en  as  we  forgive  t 

One  of  the  journals  alluded  to  (the  National  Freemason)  said  of 
these  lines :  "  The  sentiments  are  touching  and  appropriate,  and  strictly 
in  accordance  with  the  conciliatory  character  of  their  author.  How- 


CONCEPTION   AND  PREPARATIONS. 

eter  much  acme  of  the  Brotherhood  may  have  differed  with  Brother 
Morris  in  regard  to  his  plan  for  Uniformity  of  Work,  none  who 
know  him  but  will  accord  to  him  a  pure  and  disinterested  purpose. 
The  confidential  friend  of  such  men  as  William  B.  Hubbard,  Philip 
C.  Tucker,  Charles  Scott,  Salem  Town,  Henry  Wingate,  and  other 
choice  spirits  of  the  generation  that  is  fast  dropping  into  the  grave ;. 
the  man  who  has  published  seventy-four  different  volumes  of  a  Ma- 
sonic character ;  the  admitted  good  fellow, '  genial,  witty,  and  wise/ 
of  Masonic  circles,  everywhere,  and  withal  the  man  who,  at  the  age 
of  fifty,  has  yet  to  find  anything  in  his  pocket  to  compensate  him  for 
labors  given  to  the  best  interests  of  Freemasonry, — he  cannot  leave  our 
shores  for  a  long  and  laborious  tour  into  Oriental  countries  without 
bearing  with  him,  the  '  God  bless  the  old  enthusiast !  may  his  return. 
be  blest!'" 

So  far  as  baggage,  books,  and  introductions  are  concerned,  I  found 
it  unnecessary  to  encumber  myself  inconveniently.  Two  suits  of 
clothes  and  half  a  dozen  books  were  quite  sufficient  As  to  reading^ 
a  man  going  to  Palestine  must  go  carrying  his  reading  in  his  head  ; 
he  will  get  but  little  time  to  accumulate  it  there.  Thomson's  Land 
and  Book ;  Osborne's  Past  and  Present  of  Palestine,  and  a  few 
others,  amply  sufficed  me  for  reading  on  the  journey.  So  far  as 
clothing  is  concerned,  the  tailors  in  Beyrout  will  make  you  up  suits 
quite  as  good  and  one  half  cheaper  than  New  York  tradesmen. 
I  had  written  a  few  leading  Brethren,  B.  B.  French,  J.  W.  B.  McLeod 
Moore,  and  others,  soliciting  letters  of  general  introduction,  and  the 
request  was  cordially  granted ;  but  I  never  found  occasion  to  use 
them.  Cosmopolitan  Consistory,  New  York  city,  kindly  presented 
me  an  elegant  diploma  of  the  thirty-second  degree.  My  own  diplo- 
ma as  a  Master  Maaon  and  member  of  Fortitude  Lodge,  No.  47, 
LaGrange,  Kentucky,  was,  however,  the  only  document  I  ever  found 
occasion  to  use.  Even  my  passport,  which  I  had  taken  the  precau- 
tion to  procure  from  Washington,  with  some  trouble  and  expense, 
was  of  not  the  slightest  service  to  me,  although  I  would  recommend 
every  traveller  to  take  one. 

After  these  preliminaries,  it  suffices  to  say  that  I  took  passage 
rom  New  York,  Sunday  morning,  February  2,  1868.  having  some- 
thing in  common  with  those  of  whom  the  poet  long  ago  sang— 

Bound  for  holy  Palestine, 

Nimbly  v  e  brushed  the  level  brine, 


CONCEPTION"  AND   PREPARATIONS. 

All  in  azure  steel  arrayed : 

O'er  the  waves  our  banners  played, 

And  made  the  dancing  billows  glow  ; 

High  upon  the  trophied  prow 

Many  a  warrior-minstrel  swung 

His  sounding  harp,  and  boldly  sung.— I7.  Wharto*. 


COIN  OF  BAB-CHOBA8. 


CHAPTER  EL 

CROSSING  THE  ATLANTIC. 

ELABORATE  this  chapter  for  the  benefit  of  that  large 
class  of  readers  to  whom  "  the  ocean  wave  "  is  a  romance,. 
and  who  peruse  the  smaller  incidents  of  travel  with  a  relish. 
The  critic  may  sneer  at  my  title,  "  Crossing  the  Atlantic," 
ill-naturedly  affirming  that  a  thousand  voyagers  have  al- 
ready described  the  occurrences  of  ocean-life,  and  that  nothing  new 
can  be  said  upon  the  subject.  Very  likely;  yet  to  many  of  those 
who  will  peruse  these  "  Hand-marks,"  the  pennings  of  other  East- 
ern travellers  are  as  though  they  were  never  written.  I  have  dis- 
covered, since  my  return,  that  nothing  in  a  traveller's  recollection 
is  too'trivial  to  interest  those  who  do  not  travel,  and  that  the  most 
interesting  facts  in  the  tourist's  journal  are  those  which  personally  he 
may  deem  too  trifling  for  publication.  Hence  I  make  this  chapter 
of  daily  life  upon  the  sea. 

It  was  on  the  second  day  of  February,  1868,  and,  of  all  the  days  in 
the  year,  a  bright,  cloudless  "  Lord's  day,"  that  I  mounted  the  steps 
of  the  steamship  "  France,"  Captain  Grace,  to  witness  the  castiug- 
off  of  lines  and  her  departure  from  Pier  No.  47,  North  River,  New 
York.  The  ferruginous  mass  moved  reluctantly  from  her  bed,  seem- 
ingly regretful  of  the  necessity  of  leaving  the  cosy  seat  on  which  she 
had  reposed  for  two  weeks.  If,  as  the  feminine  pronoun  implies,  our 
ship  has  the  tastes  of  a  woman,  she  may  well  prefer  her  quiet  berth,. 
and  the  praises  of  the  admiring  crowds  who  have  been  so  loud  in  their 
approval  of  her  fine  bust,  figure-head,  and  form,  to  the  icy  waves  of 
ocean,  and  the  cold  criticisms  of  sea  monsters  who  await  her  com- 
ing yonder,  during  a  winter-voyage  of  twelve  days. 

The  moment  of  departure  is  a  solemn  one  to  me ;  the  act  of  sev- 

ing  the  last  tie  that  binds  me  to  my  native  land  makes  me  sad.    I 

\  join  in  the  parting  words  exchanged  between  ship  and  shore,. 

but  withdraw  myself  to  a  solitary  place  and  consider,  in  a  spirit  of 


(SOING  DOWN  THE  BAT.  23 

prayerful  inquiry  the  questions,  Shall  I  again  tread  those  streets  ? 
Am  I  really  justified  in  making  this  pilgrimage;  or  is  it  mere 
romance  that  is  taking  me,  at  my  years,  upon  so  long  a  journey? 
And  may  I  expect  the  blessing  of  the  GRAND  MASTER  upon  an 
enterprise  so  much  out  of  the  accustomed  routine  of  my  profession  ? 
In  that  hour  of  self-examination,  I  solemnly  declare  it,  I  stood  self 
vindicated  and  supported  by  the  feeling  that  something  more  than 
mere  curiosity  had  moved  me  to  the  work  I  had  undertaken,  and 
that  I  could  rely  upon  the  same  HAND  which  had  untiringly  led  me 
up  and  down  through  an  itinerancy  of  fifty  years. 

For  myself,  I  can  honestly  aver  that  I  look  to  nothing  but  hard 
labor,  economical  fare,  and  diligent  study,  during  the  months  before 
me.  In  my  travelling  bags  I  have  a  judicious  selection  of  works 
upon  Oriental  themes,  with  an  ample  supply  of  paper  to  fix  my  own 
observations.  Members  of  the  Masonic  fraternity  and  others  have 
forwarded  me  letters  and  credentials  in  generous  supply.  The  moral 
and  material  encouragement  of  nearly  four  thousand  friends  is  the 
basis  of  my  mission,  and  I  feel  that  the  Godspeed  of  half  a  million 
more  is  wafted  on  the  breezes  behind  me.  And  so  in  that  mood,  in  a 
solitary  corner  of  the  busy  ship,  my  thoughts  review  the  situation. 

In  going  down  the  bay  I  occupied  the  hours  in  writing  parting 
letters  to  the  members  of  my  family,  the  wife  of  twenty-seven  years, 
and  the  seven  children  who  call  me  father;  also  to  a  number  of 
devoted  friends  whose  words  and  deeds  clung  to  me  in  parting 
moments  with  a  tenacity  that  nothing  can  loosen;  and  so  I  swung 
out  upon  that  ocean  which  in  Bible  times  no  sailor  dared  even  cross, 
but  which  now  is  underlaid  by  telegraphic  wires,  connecting  my 
home  at  La  Grange  with  the  City  of  Jerusalem  itself. 

Out  of  three  steamers  announced  to  sail  from  New  York  across 
the  Atlantic,  February  1st,  I  chose  this  of  the  "National  Line"  of 
Liverpool  boats.  For  one  hundred  dollars,  American  currency,  a 
first-class  passage  was  given,  while  the  same  accommodations  in  the 
"  Cunard"  line  would  cost  one  hundred  and  sixty-five  dollars.  Both 
are  English  lines,  as  all  the  American  steamships  were  driven  from 
the  sea  during  the  civil  war.  There  is  also  a  German  line  which 
stops  at  Havre,  France,  going,  and  at  Southampton,  England, 
coming.  It  was  on  this  line  that  I  returned  in  July,  but  I  cannol 
recommend  it  to  the  reader. 

The  France  is  a  fine  new  vessel,  this  being  her  fourth  voyage. 
Her  tonnage  is  2,428  tons.  In  length  she  is  405  feet ;  in  breadth  of 


|4  DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  STEAMER. 

beam,  42  feet;  in  depth,  from  the  upper  deck  to  the  keel,  30  feet 
Like  all  the  vessels  of  this  line,  she  is  a  scrao-propeller,  that  is,  her 
instrument  of  propulsion  is  a  screw  set  up  at  the  stern,  which,  in 
the  most  mysterious  manner  and  "in  solemn  silence,"  moves  theso 
five  thousand  tons  of  boat,  and  freight,  and  passengers,  at  the  rate  of 
ten  miles  an  hour.  As  I  could  never  see  the  screw,  nor  the  ma- 
chinery that  moved  it,  I  was  fain  to  compare  the  whole  apparatus  to 
\he  silent,  mysterious  power  that  keeps  in  motion  a  well-disciplined 
Lodge  of  Masons.  The  analogy  would  be  perfect  were  it  not  that  a 
iteamship  is  of  the  feminine  gender,  while  a  Masonic  Lodge  is 
wually  the  reverse  !* 

The  steering  apparatus  of  the  France  is,  British-fashion,  at  the 
item,  placed  in  a  small,  cramped-up  crypt,  which  holds  a  half-dozen 
sailors,  who  turn  the  spokes  of  the  wheel  in  the  same  inartistic  style 
that  the  Phoenicians  practised  in  the  days  of  Sesostris.  When  an 
order  is  sent  from  the  foreship  to  the  stern,  it  takes  as  many  messen- 
gers to  pass  it  from  one  to  the  other  as  for  a  general  of  division  to 
move  Company  C  of  the  53d  Regiment  into  line  of  battle,  or  as  the 
W.  M.  requires  to  get  his  will  and  pleasure  known  to  the  Lodge. 
But  it  would  never  do  for  an  Englishman  to  adopt  a  Yankee  inven- 
tion, and  so  steering-lines  to  their  steamers  and  check-ropes  to  their 
nulroad  trains  are  postponed  until  after  the  millennium. 

Oar  fine  steamer  is  built  of  rolled  iron  plates,  thirty  inches  wide 
and  one  inch  thick,  riveted  together  in  the  manner  of  steam-boilers, 
•tanch  and  tight  There  is  not  the  least  danger  of  these  seams 
ripping;  indeed,  if  the  sewing-machine  man  who  calls  quarterly  at 
my  house  to  sell  me  a  machine,  will  only  invent  such  a  lock-stitch  as 
this,  his  fortune  is  made.  We  have  three  masts,  and  when  the  wind 
i  fair,  as  it  was  the  greater  part  of  my  voyage,  the  sails  afford  con- 
J  assistance  in  propulsion.  A  reasonable  supply  of  long- 
s-boats, and  jolly-boats  are  stowed  along  the  sides  of 
H  suggesting  that  ocean-life  is  uncertain,  and  it  is  best  to 
in  fair  weather  for  foul.  The  speed  of  the  vessel  may  be 
t>m  the  following  table  of  distances  run  for  the  first  eight 
Jays,  computed  every  day  at  HIGH  xn : 


communications°n  board  the  France  we  were  never  unmindful 

* nt>  eren  the  i°°d woman 


OFFICERS   AKD   CREW.  26 

Monday,  February    3,  260  miles. 

Tuesday,  «  4,260  « 

Wednesday,  "  5,  268  " 

Thursday,  "  6,  259  " 

Friday,  "  7,  265  « 

Saturday,  "  8,  272  « 

Sunday,  "  9,  272  " 

Monday,  "  10,  271  " 

The  remarkable  uniformity  of  these  daily  footings-up  will  strike 
the  reader ;  steamship  travel,  under  a  settled  condition  of  weather, 
being  almost  as  regular  as  life  upon  the  rail. 

Our  ship  is  officered  by  a  captain  and  four  mates,  or  ship's  officers, 
as  they  are  termed ;  the  latter  being  hearty,  well-educated  men,  kept 
in  training  for  promotion  in  due  time :  for  as  no  man  can  be  Master 
who  has  not  served  in  training  as  Warden,  so  no  man  can  be  captain 
who  has  not  served  as  mate.  All  the  working  charges  of  the  ship  are 
apportioned  among  these  four,  according  to  fixed  rules  of  naval  service. 
Besides  these,  there  is  a  purser,  who  acts  as  quartermaster  of  the 
ship ;  a  surgeon,  six  engineers,  and  assistants  in  abundance.  The 
whole  crew,  from  captain  to  chambermaid,  numbers  104.  Of  course 
everything  is  intensely  British,  officers,  crew,  slush-buckets,  &c., 
even  down  to  the  acceptable  sirloins  of  beef  served  daily  to  the 
passe Qgers.  The  only  thing  on  board  that  I  can  name  American 
is  the  coal,  and  if  the  captain's  expressed  (and  profane)  opinion  may 
be  relied  upon,  even  that  were  better  British  too.  Every  passenger 
on  board,  except  three,  talks  about  "  going  home  "  whenever  Great 
Britain  is  named.  Money  is  reckoned  in  "  tuppences,"  and  I  had 
not  been  a  week  aboard  before  I  could  compute  a  considerable  sum 
in  £.,  s.,  and  d.,  a  thing  which,  it  is  said,  none  but  a  born  Briton 
•ever  could  do  before  me !  That  mythic  animal,  the  British  unicorn, 
is  marked  on  all  the  ship's  linen  and  furniture ;  in  fact,  Commodore 
Wilkes  himself  couldn't  mistake  the  nationality  of  this  steamer. 
Captain  Grace  is  a  rough-featured,  rough-mannered  sailor  of  thirty, 
taciturn  and  gruff,  and  most  ridiculously  misnamed;  but,  it  is 
claimed,  a  thorough  sailor.  At  all  hours,  by  day  and  night,  he  is  on 
the  alert,  and  wet-nurses  the  ship,  in  nursery  language,  like  a  mother 
hovering  over  her  babe.  His  pay  is  £600  per  annum,  a  short  $3,000. 
The  only  time  I  ever  spoke  to  him  was  one  Sunday  morning,  when 
I  asked  him  if  he  would  conduct  the  service  of  prayers,  as  is  custom- 
ary on  ocean  steamers.  He  declined  in  a  single  word,  an  extremely 
ahort  one,  and  then  the  conversation  flagged. 


M  A   PHOZNICIAN   BARQUE. 

Nowhere  will  this  portion  of  the  grand  Psalm  cvii.  read  with 
§uch  vividness,  as  when  you  are  lying,  of  a  quiet  Sunday  hour,  in 
your  state-room  at  sea : 

They  that  go  down  to  the  sea  in  ships,  that  do  business  in  the 
great  waters ; 

TTiese  see  the  works  of  the  Lord  and  his  wonders  in  the  deep. 

For  he  commandeth  and  raiseth  the  stormy  wind,  which  lifteth 
up  the  waves  thereof. 

They  mount  up  to  the  heaven ;  they  go  down  to  the  depths ;  their 
eonl  is  melted  because  of  trouble. 

They  reel  to  and  fro,  and  stagger  like  a  drunken  man,  and  are  at 
their  wit's  end. 

Then  they  cry  to  the  Lord  in  their  trouble,  and  he  bringeth  them 
out  of  their  distresses. 

He  mnketh  the  storm  a  calm,  so  that  the  waves  thereof  are  still 

Then  are  they  glad  because  they  be  quiet;  so  he. bringeth  them  to 
their  desired  haven. 

After  this  description  of  a  first-class  Atlantic  steamer  in  the  year 
of  grace  1868,  the  following  picture  of  a  Pho3nician  vessel  of  B.  c. 
1000  will  afford  a  forcible  contrast.  In  one  of  my  chapters  I  will 
describe  the  size,  construction,  and  capacity  of  this  old  Tyrian 
barque,  such  as  those  invincible  mariners  sailed  in,  when  they 
gathered  up  the  treasures  of  the  Roman  world,  passing  through  the 
-:t«  of  Gibraltar,  turning  to  the  right  as  far  as  Scotland  and  the 
Hultic  Sea,  and  to  the  Ifft  as  far  as  the  African  coast  trended  south- 
wards, and  bringing  from  all  quarters  the  gold,  the  tin,  the  copper, 
tin-  marble,  the  ivory,  the  spices  needed  in  the  erection,  adornment, 
and  worship  of  Solomon's  Temple. 


REFRESHMENTS   ON   BOARD.  27 

The  size  and  tonnage  of  one  of  these  Phoenician  vessels  would  scarce- 
ly compare  now  with  a  Lake  Erie  sloop.  But  hearts  of  oak  controlled 
them,  and  coasting  all  the  way  round  the  northern  shores  of  the 
Mediterranean  they  came  out  into  the  ocean  between  their  own  "  Pil- 
lars of  Hercules,"  and  following  the  sinuous  lines  of  Portugal,  Spain, 
and  France,  struck  finally  into  the  mouth  of  the  broad  Channel,  and 
reached  the  place  of  their  destination.  The  importance  of  tin  in 
hardening  the  copper,  of  which  their  cutting  tools  and  war-like  im- 
plements were  made,  justified  all  these  pains,  risks,  and  the  twelve 
months'  journeys  necessary  to  procure  it. 

The  particular  matter  upon  which  my  pen  was  engaged,  through 
the  four  weeks'  journey  from  New  York  to  Beyrout,  was  that  of 
making  an  alphabetical  agenda  of  places  to  be  visited,  and  things  to 
be  done  at  each  place.  This,  written  out  in  a«blank-book,  was  made 
so  full,  by  the  time  I  reached  Palestine,  as  to  afford  me  all  the  assist- 
ance that  a  company  of  guides  could  have  rendered.  Under  the  head 
of  "  Tyre,"  for  instance,  I  had  more  than  one  hundred  distinct  facts 
and  suggestions  in  alphabetical  form,  by  which,  when  I  visited  that 
city,  my  researches  were  very  greatly  expedited. 

Of  cabin,  or  first-class  passengers,  we  have  twenty-four,  with  room 
for  nearly  one  hundred ;  of  steerage,  or  second-class  passengers,  there 
are  sixty-four.  The  latter  pay  only  twenty-five  dollars  each,  for 
which  they  receive  good,  wholesome  victuals,  and  the  services  of  the 
ship's  surgeon.  To  us  of  the  cabin  every  possible  convenience  is,  of 
course,  afforded.  An  experienced  surgeon  is  one  of  the  regular  officers 
of  the  ship,  and  his  skill  is  ever  at  our  command.  Chambermaids  are 
in  attendance  upon  the  ladies,  and  state-room  stewards  upon  the  gen- 
tlemen, all  without  extra  charge.  Three  regular  meals  per  diem  are 
spread,  besides  a  luncheon,  which  in  itself  is  a  meal.*  Let  me  recall 
the  eating  arrangements :  Breakfast  is  announced  at  8  A.  M.,  a  sub- 
stantial British  meal,  accompanied  by  the  best  of  tea  and  tolerable 
coffee.  Luncheon  is  at  High  XH,  presenting  soups,  cold  meats  in 
large  variety,  bread,  cheese,  and  pickles.  Dinner  appears  at  4  p.  M., 
Supper  at  7 \,  the  latter  being  made  up  of  coffee,  toast,  bread,  and  cheese. 
Besides  these,  a  passenger  who,  for  any  reason,  fails  to  report  him- 
self at  the  regular  hours,  can  be  accommodated  through  the  steward 
with  a  special  supply  of  provisions,  at  any  hour.  The  bar  (fluid,  not 
forensic)  is  stocked  with  wines,  ales,  and  spirits,  of  a  character  rarely 

*  On  the  Bill  of  Fare  of  Feb.  5,  prairie  chickens  appeared  among  the  items  of  dinner. 


o$  SEASICKNESS. 

matched  on  the  American  side  of  the  "great  drink,"  and  these  are 
charged  topassengers  who  order  them,  at  moderate  prices.  With 
tuch  arrangements  for  table  comforts,  a  man  must  be  harder  to 
please  than  I  am,  who  can  discover  grounds  of  complaint 

Does  the  reader  inquire  whether  I  was  seasick  ?  /  tvas.  I  never 
go  upon  water  without  being  seasick.  Even  a  slight  swell  on  Lake 
Erie  has  sent  me  to  the  dead-level,  incontinently.  Was  I  not  obliged 
to  go  ashore,  on  that  little  Cleveland  fishing  excursion  which  Peter 
Thatcher  provided  for  me  in  1863,  and  there,  amidst  the  sneers  of 
men  and  the  laughter  of  women,  settle  my  accounts  in  the  most  dis- 
graceful manner  ?  Yes ;  and  in  a  sea  voyage,  therefore,  I  always  make 
my  calculations  to  give  up  the  first  few  days  to  the  tergiversations  of 
my  stomach.  This  reconciles  me  in  some  degree  to  the  motion  of  the 
vessel,  and,  by  the  assistance  of  four  or  five  spells  of  vomiting  per 
diem,  I  come,  in  the  course  of  time,  to  a  mariner's  status.  As  to 
remedies,  all  that  a  seasick  person  wants  is  something  to  assist  him 
through  his  unpleasant  paroxysms.  Brandy  and  other  spirits  make  a 
good  toddy  to  stay  his  stomach  after  nausea,  but  will  not  prevent  it. 
Titrate  of  magnesia  may  be  recommended  as  a  good  thing  to  neu- 
tralize the  acidity  produced  in  the  earlier  stages  of  seasickness,  and  I 
advise  you  to  provide  yourself  with  some  bottles  of  it ;  also  some 
Brandreth  pills;  a  flask  of  pure  cordial  gin ;  a  quart-bottle  of  strong 
coffee,  ready  made ;  a  few  lemons,  with  white  sugar,  and  some  good  sour 
apples.  Dress  warm ;  wear  thick  overshoes ;  walk  a  good  deal  in  the 
fresh  air ;  be  regular  in  your  habits ;  be  sociable ;  rise  with  the  sea- 
gull, and  go  to  bed  with  the  cook.  When  seasickness  passes  off,  then 
follows  an  appetite,  accompanied  with  elasticity  of  spirits  and  diges- 
tion, such  as  go  with  my  best  reminiscences  of  childhood. 

The  worst  sufferers  from  the  mal  de  mer,  as  the  French  call  it,  are 

those  who  cannot  vomit,  or  who  vomit  with  great  difficulty  and  pain. 

Some  of  this  class  have  scarcely  a  moment's  ease  during  the  voyage. 

Nausea,  want  of  appetite,  indigestion,  and  costiveness.  produce  low 

•prits,  ill-temper,  and  a  very  hatred  of  existence.    Such  an  one  is 

reported  to  have  said  that  the  first  day  he  went  to  sea  he  was  afraid 

should  die;  the  third  day  he  was  afraid  he  should  not!    Ladies 

Her  more  from  seasickness  than  gentlemen.    Pale,  staggering,  and 

begone,  the  gay  and  rosy  damsels  of  our  company  were  so  trans- 

fied  by  the  ungallant  sea-god,  that  their  best  friends  could 

r  recognize  them.    That  class  of  persons  who  boast  that  they 

«TP  ntver  *a*>ck  (and  there  are  always  some  bores  of  the  sort),  suffer. 


AMUSEMENTS    AT   SEA.  2& 

upon  the  whole,  quite  as  much  as  the  rest.  For  if  they  are  never 
seasick,  they  are  never  seawett,  but  mope  around  during  the  voyage, 
the  dullest  of  the  company. 

There  is  a  piece  of  advice  that  I  will  offer  you  here :  Don't  suppose 
that  anybody  else  cares  a  straw  who  you  are,  or  where  you  are 
going.  Travellers,  like  Freemasons,  meet  upon  the  level  and  part  upon 
the  square;  and  no  one  is  valued  a  bawbee,  except  as  he  possesses 
powers  of  pleasing,  for  the  hour.  Fine  manners,  dignity,  genteel 
breeding  and  the  like  will  pine  in  the  corner,  while  a  cheerful 
readiness  of  song  and  anecdote  brings  its  possessor  into  social 
prominence,  enabling  him  both  to  receive  and  impart  pleasure  during 
the  tedium  of  the  way. 

The  time  of  ocean  travellers  is  variously  and  generally  uselessly 
employed.  Industrious  persons  play  checkers  and  cards ;  the  rest 
walk  the  deck,  eat,  smoke,  and  sleep.  How  about  myself?  I  give 
so  many  hours  a  day  to  the  study  of  Tliomson  ("  Land  and  Book ;") 
Barclay  ("  City  of  the  Great  King") ;  Osborm  (  "  Palestine,  Past 
and  Present") ;  the  Holy  Writings  and  other  tomes  bearing  upon 
Oriental  matters ;  so  many  to  the  composition  of  letters  and  memo- 
randa; so  many  to  checkers  (my  favorite  vanity) ;  and  so  many  to 
refreshment  and  sleep.  Everything  on  board  conduces  to  regu- 
larity. The  ship's  bell  at  12g  strikes  one,  at  1  strikes  two,  at  1£ 
strikes  three,  at  2  strikes  four,  at  2£  strikes  five,  at  3  strikes  six, 
at  3 g  strikes  seven,  at  4  strikes  eight,  which  being  the  extent  of  its 
striking  powers,  a  second  series  begins  at  4£  and  extends  to  8.  Each 
of  these  periods  of  four  hours  is  termed  a  watch — of  which  there 
are  six  in  the  twenty-four.  One  of  these  intervals  I  am  told  is 
termed  the  Dog  watch;  but,  although  I  listened  attentively  for  canine 
indications,  I  could  never  detect  them,  and  don't  believe  there  was 
a  dog  on  board.  The  traveller,  when  rendered  sleepless  by  nausea 
and  ennui,  marks  these  solemn  chimes  of  the  ship's  bell  with  feelings 
that  he  cannot  analyze,  but  can  never  forget.  How  often  they  re- 
called to  me  the  lines  I  have  sung  in  so  many  a  lodge-room  and  by  so 
many  a  grave : 

Solemn  strikes  the  funeral  chime, 
Notes  of  our  departing  time ; 
While  we  journey  here  below, 
Through  a  pilgrimage  of  wo. 

I  venture  to  say  that  the  genus  loci,  the  spirit  that  inhabits  my 
old  state-room  (No.  13)  on  board  the  ship  France,  will  testify  to 


80  DINNER   UNDER  DIFFICULTIES. 

baring  heard  me  sing  it  three  score  times  and  ten,  as  I  lay  there  and 
mused  upon  the  lessons  of  the  ship's  bell. 

There  was  almost  nothing  visible  to  the  eye  during  our  voyage. 
Not  a  vessel,  not  an  iceberg,  not  a  whale.  One  traveller,  indeed,  de- 
clares he  saw  a  whale;  but  it  is  finally  conceded  that  he  only  saw  the 
tpout.  Not  a  fragment  of  a  wreck  appeared  in  sight  ;  in  fact,  noth- 
ing at  all  but  a  large  following  of  sea-gulls  that  took  up  with  us  at 
Sandy  Hook,  nor  left  us  a  moment  until  we  sighted  the  Irish  coast 
How  or  when  they  rest,  if  indeed  they  ever  do  rest  upon  these  long 
flights  of  twelve  days,  is  a  mystery  more  than  Masonic.'  The  sailors 
believe  that  when  night  comes  on,  the  gulla  settle  down  upon  the 
water  to  ride  and  sleep.  Bat  this  can  scarcely  be,  for  keen-eyed  and 
strong-winged  as  they  are,  they  could  not  see  and  overtake  the  ship 
again  after  twelve  hours'  sail.  Their  motive  in  pursuing  us  so  closely 
is  strictly  mercenary,  viz.,  to  gather  the  fragments  from  the  steward's 
pantry,  which  are  being  constantly  thrown  into  the  water.  These 
the  sea-birds  seize  with  great  expertness.  Cast  anything  overboard, 
»  pill-box,  a  cracker,  a  piece  of  soap,  or  even  a  bit  of  a  Masonic  Moni- 
tor, and  fifty  pairs  of  eyes  detect  it  ;  fifty  pairs  of  iron-gray  wings  "  go 
in  "  for  it  ;  then  one  strong  fowl  rises  from  the  sea  with  it  in  his  bill  — 
ail  with  a  velocity  that  makes  you  giddy  to  observe.  Among  the 
various  theories  concerning  the  origin  of  sea-gulls,  I  will  venture  my 
own,  viz.,  that  they  are  the  ghosts  of  newspaper  reporters,  condemned, 
for  a  season,  to  follow  in  the  wake  of  outward-bound  vessels,  as  an 
expiation  for  the  innumerable  lies  they  told  during  their  earthly 
career! 

A  cheerful  mind  will  derive  amusement  from  almost  any  combina- 
tion of  circumstances  ;  and  I  gathered  a  fund  of  it  in  watching  our 
family  of  twenty-four  passengers  at  their  meals,  during  a  three-days' 
itorm  that  came  down  on  us  about  the  middle  of  the  trip.  The 
reader  shall  have  his  share  of  the  fun.  Imagine  everything  fastened 

floor,  tables,  chair,  etc.,  and  the  ladies  and  gentlemen  fastened 

»tly  to  their  seats  as  human  muscle  can  do  it    The  ship  is 

Baying  from  side  to  side  like  a  five-second  pendulum.    Now  she 

to  starboard  to  an  angle  of  forty-five  degrees.     Soup-plate 

nght  hand,  a  convulsive  grip  upon  the  table  with  the  left 

Mndiculars;   the  hot  soup  slops  over  upon  your  hand 

ie  slup  on  the  other  side,  forty^five  degrees  to  larboard. 

K  ;  the  soup  spurts  up  your  sleeve,  in  spite  of  all  you  can 

ang  goes  the  ship  again  to  starboard.     Try  horizontals  ; 


now 


FREEMASONRY   AT   SEA.  31 

soup,  plate  and. all  are  swashed  into  your  bosom  with  a  freedom,  fer- 
vency, and  zeal  rarely  equalled  and  never  surpassed.  And  so  for  an 
hour  the  dinner  is  a  running  accompaniment  of  china,  glasses,  cut- 
lery, and  spoons,  laughable  to  witness. 

At  2  P.M.  on  the  13th  of  February,  1868, "  we  of  the  mystic  level," 
as  poor  Burns  used  to  call  the  Masonic  fraternity,  stole  quietly  away 
from  the  crowd  to  the  Purser's  room,  and  there,  having  previously 
tested  each  other,  by  ancient  and  approved  methods,  we  opened  a 
moot  lodge  upon  the  First  Degree,  "for  Special  Purposes."  The 
names  of  our  temporary  dignitaries  were  these  : 

1.  Robert  Morris,  late  Grand  Master  of  Masons  in  Kentucky,  a* 
W.M. 

2.  David  W.  Thomson,  late  Grand  Lecturer  of  Illinois,  as  S.  W. 

3.  George  Catchpole,  Senior  Warden  of  Rose  Lodge  No.  590,  Rose, 
Wayne  Co.,  New  York,  as  /.  W.  • 

4.  William  Thomas,  of  St.  John's  Lodge,  New  Brunswick  (first 
officer  of  the  Steamship  France),  as  Treasurer. 

5.  George  Campbell,  of  British  Oak  Lodge  No.  831,  Stratford,  En- 
gland (fourth  officer  of  the  Steamship  France),  as  Secretary. 

6.  W.  G.  Barrett,  of  Piatt  Lodge  No.  194,  New  York  city  (Purser 
of  the  Steamship  France),  as  S.  D. 

7.  James  Wilson,  of  Mariners'  Lodge,  Liverpool,  England  (Chief- 
Engineer  of  the  Steamship  France),  as  J.  D. 

8.  Thomas  Hughes,  of  Amity  Lodge  No.  323,  of  New  York  city 
(Chief  Steward  of  the  Steamship  France),  as  1st  Master  of  Cer. 

9.  William  Carroll,  of  Varick  Lodge  No.  31,  Jersey  City,  N.  J. 
(Chief  Baker  of  the  Steamship  France),  as  2d  Master  of  Cer. 

10.  William  Dempster,  of  Commonwealth  Lodge  No.  409,  Brooklyn, 
N.  Y.,  as  Tyler. 

This  symposium  was,  in  all  respects,  a  notable  one,  and  proceed- 
ings of  a  particularly  pleasant  character  were  had.  Remarks  were 
volunteered  concerning  the  practical  nature  of  a  fraternity  that,  uni- 
ting the  best  elements  of  all  societies,  avoids  the  offensive  peculiari- 
ties of  any.  The  poem  entitled  The  Checkered  Pavement  was  recited 
by  Mr.  Thomson  as  the  sequel  to  an  address  delivered  by  him  in 
good  style.  My  own  share  in  the  proceedings  was  made  up  of  the 
following  lines,  composed  the  evening  before,  upon  first  beholding 
Skellig  Revolving  Light  on  tho  coast  of  Ireland : 


j  FREEMASONRY  AT  SEA. 

THE  SKELLIG  LIGHT. 

When  hastening  eastward  o'er  the  waste, 
By  ocean-breakers  rudely  chased, 

Our  eager  eye  seeks  for  the  smile 

That  marks  the  dangerous  SkeUig  Isle, 
We  Joy  to  catch  the  flashing  ray 
That  guides,  unerringly,  our  way. 

What  though  in  momentary  gloom 
Night  may  resume  her  sable  plume,— 

What  though  the  clouds  may  settle  down, 

And  threaten  ocean's  stormiest  frown, — 
Lo  1  flashing  far  across  the  main, 
The  Skdtig  Light  beams  out  again ! 

80,  wandering  on  life's  stormy  sea, 
Oh,  Craftsmen,  by  God's  grace,  may  we 

The  tempest-tost  and  weary  find, 

In  gloomiest  hour,  in  saddest  mind, 
Our  SkeUig  Light,  from  heavenly  sun, 
To  draw  us  safely,  smoothly  on. 

Should  He  withdraw  His  smiling  face, 
"Tis  but  to  try  our  faithfulness : 

Should  He  our  pilgrimage  enshroud, 

He  stands  behind  the  threatening  cloud : 
And  though  He  smite  us  with  a  blow, 
It  ia  His  gentle  chastening  too  1 

Craftsmen,  draw  nigh  and  learn  with  me 
These  lessons  from  Freemasonry ! 

Each  implement  in  mystic  hand 

Bids  us  this  precept  understand : 
They  who  would  serve  the  Master's  state, 
Mutt  work  in  Faith,  in  Patience  wait ! 

We  sighted  the  Irish  coast  at  3  P.M.,  Wednesday,  February  12, — 
and  while  I  am  writing  this  paragraph  I  see  that  on  the.  Irish  Grand 
Lodge  Registry,  1872,  are  327  lodges,— landed  passengers  at  Queens- 
town  the  next  morning ;  *  were  sailing  up  the  Irish  Channel  all  day 

*  This  was  in  the  middle  of  a  Fenian  scare,  and  every  one  of  them,  as  I  learned 
afterwards,  was  arrested,  igorously  examined,  and  detained  for  twenty-four  hours, 
wider  the  apprehension  tl  it  they  had  come  t«  invade  the  land. 


GRATEFUL   MEMORIES. 


33 


Thursday,  and  finally  reached  the  docks  of  Liverpool  by  daylight  of 
Friday,  the  14th,  after  a  pleasant  voyage  of  twelve  days,  grateful  to 
God,  who  had  brought  me  thus  far  not  only  in  safety,  but  with  a  de- 
gree of  contentment  and  satisfaction  that  I  had  not  anticipated.  I 
shall  ever  remember  the  period  of  my  passage  from  New  York  to 
Liverpool  as  Jialcyonii  dies,  days  of  peaceful  enjoyment. 


CHAPTER  HL 

CB088ING  ENGLAND  AND  THE  CONTINENT. 

LANDED  at  Liverpool  Friday  morning.  February  14, 
1868,  and  proceeded  to  London,  so  as  to  arrive  at  5  P.  M. 
of  the  same  day.  Of  course  I  could  observe  little  or 
nothing  of  Liverpool  during  a  morning's  stay.  An  edifice 
designated  as  "Masonic  Hall,"  stands,  however,  not  far 
from  th«  railway  station,  and  naturally  enough  I  saw  that.  I  regret- 
ted the  necessity  of  passing  a  city  so  noted  for  its  attention  to  Ma- 
sonic interests  as  Liverpool ;  but  the  Marseilles  steamer  for  Beyrout 
was  advertised  for  Tuesday,  February  18,  and  the  failure  to  secure 
a  passage  in  her  would  entail  the  loss  of  ten  days'  time.  Every  hour's 
delay  would  abridge  my  stay  in  Palestine  by  so  much. 

Travellers'  tales  had  led  me  to  expect  a  severe  examination  of 
baggage  in  Liverpool ;  but  I  found  John  Bull  much  more  com- 
plaisant than  I  had  hoped  for.  The  modus  operandi  of  Custom- 
House  search  was  simple  enough.  The  six  travelling  bags  contain- 
ing the  effects  of  myself  and  assistant  lying  in  a  corner  by  them- 
selves, a  burly-looking  officer  came  up  and  asked : 
"  Have  you  any  tobacco  ?  " 

*  A  little  for  my  own  use,"  responded  my  friend,  "  only  enough 
for  my  own  use,"  The  package  being  exhibited  (two  pounds  of  nig- 
gerhead),  the  officer  continued,  with  this  non  scquitur :  "  Then  I 
suppose  you  can  give  me  a  shilling  to  drink  your  health  ?  " 

At  this  unexpected  suggestion— olstupui,  tacitus  sustinuique 
pedem — I  stood  astonished,  and  silently  kept  my  feet  Recovering, 
however,  in  a  moment,  I  passed  the  coin  of  the  realm  known  by  that 
denomination  into  his  itching  palm— without  thinking  of  the  viola- 
aon  of  my  vows  as  a  Good  Templar— and  so  covered  the  cost  of  the 
proposed  imbibition.  He  may  possibly  have  intended  his  remark  as 
a  joke,  but  it  did  not  turn  out  so.  This  was  my  only  examination. 
)t  one  of  the  five  travelling-bags  was  opened,  although  capacious 
enough  to  contain  cigars  to  supply  even  the  Prince  of  Wales  for  a 


HASTY  BIDE  THEOUGH   ENGLAND.  35 

twelvemonth.  No  other  questions  were  asked,  and  I  confess  to  have 
departed  ?rom  Liverpool  with  most  agreeable  impressions. 

The  journey  through  England,  in  an  express  train  making  forty- 
five  miles  an  hour,  affords  but  scanty  opportunities  for  observation. 
The  railway  fare,  first-class,  Liverpool  to  London,  210  miles,  foots 
up  about  $9.  Compare  this  with  the  Erie  Railway,  New  York  to 
Elmira,  270  miles,  $8.  The  motion  of  cars  on  the  Erie  is  smooth  as 
oil ;  the  English  cars  run  like  tin  pans  on  wheel-barrows.  Eeason 
is,  they  have  but  four  wheels  to  a  car,  while  the  Erie  has  twelve.  I 
do  much  of  my  reading  and  writing  while  travelling  in  American 
oars,  but  you  can  do  no  writing  here ;  and  reading  and  talking  are 
performed  under  difficulties. 

The  swiftness  and  safety  of  railway-travel  in  Great  Britain,  how- 
ever, are  proverbial.  Accidents  almost  never  occur.  The  carriages 
are  awkwardly  separated  into  small  closets,  transversely  cut  off  from 
the  main  structure,  each  containing  room  for  six  passengers,  three 
facing  the  front,  three  the  rear.  Into  these  little  rooms  you  are 
locked  by  the  conductor  (styled  the  guard),  and  have  no  means  of 
exit  except  through  his  key.  Sleeping-cars,  water-closets,  fountains 
of  drinking-water,  and  means  of  warming  the  vehicles,  were  alike 
unknown  to  railway  travellers  in  England  and  Europe  in  the  year 
of  grace  1868.  The  weather  seemed  to  me  warm  for  the  season  ; 
there  was  so  little  appearance  of  snow  and  ice  that  the  plowmen  were 
busy  in  hundreds  of  fields  near  the  roadside. 

Swiftly  as  we  were  drawn  across  this  "  right  little,  tight  little " 
island  of  England,  I  gave  thought  to  the  subject  alluded  to  in  the 
last  chapter — the  voyages  of  the  Phoenicians  to  these  islands  in  the 
most  ancient  days. 

Even  before  the  Trojan  war  (B.  c.  1184),  and  of  course  two  cen- 
turies before  Solomon's  day,  the  sailors  of  Tyre  came  to  the  Isles  of 
Tin  (Cassiterides),  lying  between  England  and  Ireland,  to  barter 
Oriental  products  for  this  metal,  and  to  the  Baltic  for  amber.  The 
copper  found  abundantly  in  Asia  Minor  and  Cyprus  was  alloyed  at 
Tyre  with  tin,  and  so  bronze  was  made,  the  proper  material  for  arms, 
medals,  statues,  &c.  All  manner  of  tools  were  made  of  this  alloy, 
bronze ;  the  plowshare  of  the  farmer,  the  pick  of  the  miner,  the 
hammer  and  compass  of  the  architect,  the  burin  of  the  engraver, 
arrowheads,  lanceheads  and  javelins,  swords,  bucklers,  helmets^ 
cuirasses,  &c.  If  tin  is  the  Pythias,  copper  is  the  Damon  of  this 
compound. 


jfi  HOTEL  IN   LONDON. 

Seeing  so  large  a  portion  of  the  island  covered  by  noblemen's 
parks  reminds  a  man  of  his  Horace :  jam  pauca  aratro  jugera 
regia,  moles  relinquent-the  palaces  of  the  great  suffer  scanty 
acreage  to  the  plowman ;  and  it  does  really  puzzle  the  observer  to  set 
where  the  farms  or  the  farmers  are.  Castles  are  distinct  enough,  and 
in  numbers,  bnt  farm-houses,  few  and  far  between. 

Arriving  in  London  5  P.  M.,  I  drove  to  Anderton's  Hotel,  No. 
162  Fleet-street,  a  house  which  I  had  seen  advertised,  under  a 
Masonic  emblem,  in  a  publication  on  board  ship.  It  is  an  old  estab- 
lishment, and  the  rooms  are  dark  and  misty,  but  kept  scrupulously 
clean.  The  waiters  are  attentive,  and  the  "  eating  department "  all 
that  can  be  desired.  The  upper  story  of  this  hotel  has  long  been 
used  for  Masonic  meetings.  Observing  quite  a  pile  of  Wardens'  sta- 
tions lumbering  up  the  stairs,  it  was  explained  that  the  lodge-rooms 
up-stairs  are  undergoing  a  course  of  cleansing  and  restoration,  and  the 
furniture  removed  for  the  purpose.  At  this  hotel,  I  first  remarked 
that  on  this  side  the  Atlantic  a  traveller's  name  is  not  asked  for. 
His  entity  is  simply  that  of  the  number  of  his  bedroom,  and  his 
bills  are  made  out  accordingly.  I  have  no  idea  that  "  the  gentlemanly 
clerk  "  of  Anderton's  Hotel  knows  my  name  even  to  this  day. 

I  need  not  say  that  I  felt  it  to  be  a  real  deprivation  to  pass  through 
London  without  calling  upon  the  Masonic  brethren  there ;  but  on 
my  return  I  hoped  to  take  more  time,  and  give  at  least  a  sketch  of 
Free  Masonry  as  it  exists  in  London,  as  weU  as  in  the  three  Grand 
Lodges  of  England,  Scotland,  and  Ireland. 

Saturday  was  spent  in  active  pursuits.  I  visited  St.  Paul's  Cathe- 
dral, to  the  top  of  which  I  climbed,  only  to  look  out  through  a  fog 
so  dense  that  the  secretary  of  my  lodge  might  write  with  it.  It  re- 
minded me  for  all  the  world  of 's  oration  before  the 

Grand  Lodge  of  -  — .  Disgusted  with  the  fog,  I  descended,  mak- 
ing a  vow  that  I  would  never  go  up  there  again.  And  I  never 
have.  In  the  Whispering  Gallery  I  tried  a  Masonic  communication 
with  a  friend,  and  found  it  went  through  intact  Visited  the  tomb 
u~  the  honored  builder  of  the  cathedral,  Christopher  Wren,  and  read 
ts  appropriate  epitaph,  "  Circumspice,"  &c.,  &c.,  so  ridiculously  ap- 
plied on  the  seal  of  the  State  of  Michigan. 

Thence  by  the  Thames  river  to  Westminster ;  inspected  the  Par- 
liament buildings,  which  I  find  already  crumbling  to  dust  as  rapidly 
as  the  Court-House  in  Louisville,  Kentucky ;  then  spent  a  glc 
two  hours  in  Westminster  Abbey. 


FKEEMASONRY   IN   ENGLAND.  37 

The  rest  of  the  day  was  occupied  in  making  preparations  for  de- 
parture, and  at  8.30  P.M.  I  took  the  Southeastern  Railway,  at  Cannon- 
street  station,  for  Dover,  which  was  reached  at  10.30  P.M. 

A  visitor  to  Jerusalem  is  shown  a  spot,  beneath  the  lantern  in  the 
Greek  Chapel  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre,  styled  the  geographical  centre 
of  the  earth.  In  a  circle  of  pavement  stands  a  short  marble  column 
to  designate  so  remarkable  a  punctum  !  Traditions  of  various  kinds 
cluster  around  the  spot,  one,  particularly,  that  from  here  was  taken 
the  clay  of  which  Adam  was  made !  In  the  same  light  I  view  Lon- 
don, the  centre  of  Ancient  York  Masonry.  From  hence,  in  1733,  was 
sent  the  holy  spark  to  our  Western  fields  that  has  kindled  into  so 
goodly  a  blaze,  one  American  lodge  swelling  (in  139  years)  to  nearly 
9,000,  and  the  four  original  lodges  of  London  increasing,  through 
England,  Scotland,  Ireland,  the  European  nations,  and  the  colonies 
in  all  quarters  of  the  earth,  to  4,000.  Even  the  lodges  of  Mark  Mas- 
ters here  (lodges  whyse  rituals  are  based  upon  a  mere  allusion  in 
the  degree  of  fellow-craft)  number  in  1872  about  100,  governed  by 
a  Mark  Grand  Lodge  of  England,  whose  officers  are  the  princes  of 
the  land.  This,  then,  is  the  true  Masonic  Centre  of  the  world ; 
from  this  dust  was  our  Masonic  Adam  moulded ! 

The  Grand  Lodge  of  England  is  composed  substantially  of  the 
same  officers  as  our  own,  adding  a  few  not  usually  nominated  on 
our  side  of  the  water,  such  as  Grand  Superintendent  of  Works, 
Grand  Director  of  Ceremonies,  Grand  Organist,  &c.  But  what  is 
peculiar  to  this  country,  and  plainly  grows  out  of  the  autocratic 
character  of  Freemasonry  in  monarchical  countries,  is  the  fact  that 
all  or  nearly  all  the  officers  of  the  Grand  Lodge  are  appointed  by  the 
Grand  Master.  This  is  particularly  the  case  with  the  Grand  Secre- 
tary, who,  in  England,  is  simply  clerk  of  the  Grand  Lodge,  wielding 
and  assuming  none  of  the  despotic  powers  often  so  offensively  as- 
sumed and  wielded  in  the  American  Grand  Lodges  by  that  func- 
tionary. 

Apropos  of  this  absolute  subordination  of  the  Grand  Secretary  to 
the  Grand  Master,  this  anecdote  is  related  of  the  Grand  Lodge 
of  England  in  1868 :  Complaints  had  been  made  against  the  Grand 
Secretary  for  his  want  of  communicativeness  and  courtesy  to  those 
who  call  upon  him,  &c.,  &c.  This  was  producing  considerable  ill 
feeling  in  the  Grand  Lodge ;  and  as  the  Earl  of  Zetland,  the  Grand 
Master,  declined  to  interfere,  or  perhaps  was  unable  to  apply  a 
remedy,  and  as  there  was  no  way  to  reach  the  Grand  Secretary  &*• 


3g  FREEMASONRY  IN  ENGLAND. 

cept  by  displacing  the  Grand  Master,  a  distinguished  London  brother 
arose  in  open  Grand  Lodge,  and  nominated  himself  for  Grand  Mas- 
ter, expressly  stating  that  the  reason  for  this  unprecedented  and  appar- 
ently immodest  act  was  that  a  Grand  Secretary  ought  to  be  appointed 
who  would  attend  to  the  business  of  the  office  and  pay  a  decent  re- 
spect to  the  feelings  of  his  brethren !  Of  course  the  nomination  failed ; 
indeed,  it  was  not  even  seconded ;  yet  it  may,  for  all  that,  have  some 
of  the  intended  effect 

In  addressing  the  Grand  Master  of  England,  Masonic  etiquette 
demands  that  all  communications  shall  pass  through  the  hands  of  the 
Deputy  Grand  Master,  the  Grand  Registrar,  or  the  Grand  Secretary  ; 
otherwise  they  will  scarcely  have  attention.  It  is  not  likely,  in  point 
of  fact,  that  such  men  as  the  Duke  of  Sussex,  the  Earl  of  Zetland, 
the  Duke  of  Leinster,  and  noblemen  of  those  high  grades,  give  other 
consideration  to  the  details  of  the  Masonic  institution  than  to  preside 
at  the  ordinary  and  extraordinary  communications  of  Grand  Lodges, 
and  the  festivals  that  constitute  the  sequela  of  those  occasions.  No 
questions  upon  Masonic  Law  are  submitted  to  the  Grand  Master. 
No  vcxata  questiones  of  usage,  of  lodge  altercations,  of  irregulari- 
ties in  Masonic  proceedings,  and  the  like,  are  pushed  into  his  lord- 
ship's pocket  to  disturb  the  smooth  digestion  of  his  dinner.  All 
these  matters  have  a  common  direction  here,  that  of  the  Board  of 
General  Purposes,  as  it  is  styled,  a  sort  of  imperium  in  imperio,  hap- 
pily unknown  in  the  United  States.  This  Board,  I  am  told,  so 
thoroughly  digests  the  greater  part  of  the  business  submitted  to  its 
charge,  that  it  is  never  heard  of  again. 

Neither  does  the  Grand  Master  of  England  ever  deliver  formal 
addresses  to  his  Grand  Lodge.  By  this,  it  will  be  seen  how  easy  is 
his  berth,  compared  with  that  of  an  American  Grand  Master,  who 
is  often  crowded  with  correspondence,  sometimes  tyrannized  over  by 
his  own  Grand  Secretary,  and  scarcely  ever  allowed  his  little  bill  of 
"stationery  and  postage-money"  for  his  trouble.  It  is  social 
position  alone  that  qualifies  a  gentleman  here  for  the  high  office  of 
Grand  Master.  The  most  exalted  nobleman  who  will  accept  it  has 
it,  of  right  Quoting  from  an  article  from  the  pen  of  my  old  coad- 
jutor, Bro.  E.  D.  Cooke,  "The  election  of  Grand  Master  in  this  coun- 
try is  not  due  to  any  knowledge  a  man  may  possess  of  the  institution, 
or  any  ability  on  his  part  to  perform  the  duties  of  that  exalted  posi- 
tion, but  simply  to  the  social  position  he  may  occupy."  All  this, 
It  cannot  bo  denied,  sounds  queerly  to  those  who  are  accustomed  to 


AMERICAN  MASON'S  TBAVELLING.  39 

view  the  Masonic  fraternity  as  a  band  of  men  who  "  meet  upon  the 
level  and  who  part  upon  the  square." 

Americans  visiting  Europe  are  scarcely  ever  able  to  tell  us  any- 
thing of  Freemasonry  in  that  country,  when  they  come  home,  even 
though  they  may  themselves  be  members  of  the  craft  This  used  to 
.  strike  me  strangely.  On  being  questioned,  they  would  reply  that  they 
could  not  find  out  the  time  of  lodge-meetings ;  or  that  nobody  could 
tell  them  where  the  lodge-room  was.  These  replies  are  based  upon 
ignorance  of  the  peculiarities  of  the  Order  in  England.  Most  Lodges 
here  havt  no  halls  ;  but  few  of  them  have  even  a  room  of  their  own. 
They  meet  for  the  greater  part  in  the  upper  rooms  of  taverns  rented 
by  the  season.  Their  Masonic  furniture  and  paraphernalia,  which 
are  extremely  scanty,  are  brought  out  of  chests  and  wardrobes  and 
arranged  for  the  single  occasion.  The  meeting  being  over,  these 
sacred  objects  are  again  concealed  from  public  sight,  and  the  room 
restored  to  travellers'  uses.  Of  course,  then,  when  you  inquire  of 
your  landlord,  your  banker,  or  your  general  correspondent,  "where 
is  the  lodge-hall  ?"  he  confesses  his  ignorance,  and,  if  himself  a  non- 
Mason,  most  likely  volunteers  the  opinion  that  there  is  no  Freemason's 
Lodge  in  the  place !  Again,  nearly  all  travellers  from  our  own  coun- 
try to  Europe  go  abroad  in  the  summer.  But  at  that  season  the 
Masonic  Lodges  do  not  meet  at  all.  From  about  the  middle  of  June 
to  October  there  is  no  life  in  European  Masonry  whatever.  No 
wonder  then  that  our  countrymen  come  back  to  us  as  ignorant  upon 
peculiarities  of  the  Order  in  foreign  countries  as  they  left  The 
remedies  are  twofold :  First,  to  provide  one's  self  with  a  Masonic 
Kegister  of  the  foreign  Lodges ;  Second,  to  go  abroad  in  the  fall  or 
winter,  when  Freemasonry  in  all  the  Masonic  countries  of  Europe  is 
active. 

Crossing  the  channel  between  Dover  and  Calais  in  a  ferry-boat, 
compared  with  which  the  one  that  connects  Snooksborough  with 
Pumpkin  ville,  on  the  Tennessee  river,  is  a  gorgeous  palace,  I  left 
Calais  at  1.30  A.  M.,  Sunday,  February  16,  and  reached  the  capital 
of  France  in  six  hours.  Just  as  I  hand  this  page  to  the  printer 
(February  1,  1872),  I  notice  that  "  the  project  of  a  steam-ferry  across 
the  Straits  of  Dover  is  approved  by  a  commission  of  the  French 
Assembly,"  and  the  editor  of  one  of  the  New  York  papers  comment- 
ing upon  the  fact  justly  says,  had  the  estuary  of  the  Delaware  been  as 
broad  as  the  English  Channel  at  Dover,  it  would  long  ago  have  been 
oridged  by  magnificent  ferry-boats  such  as  ply  between  New  York 


40  PABIS  A¥D  MARSEILLES. 

and  Jersey  City.  Yet  the  great  cities  of  London  and  Paris  have  not 
hitherto  been  able  to  devise  any  better  means  of  crossing  their  narrow 
sea  than  cock-boats,  which  make  every  one  sick  who  sets  foot  on 
them.  There  is  a  prospect  now,  we  are  happy  to  see,  of  an  improve- 
ment 

Owing  to  the  detention  of  a  piece  of  baggage  by  some  blundering 
omcial,  I  was  detained  in  Paris  till  8  P.  M.  The  system  of  forward- 
ing  baggage  on  the  English  and  Continental  railways  is  exactly  what 
it  was  in  our  country  in  1830 ;  a  century  behind  1868.  Anything 
like  a  "  through  baggage  system  "  of  duplicate  checks  has  not  passed 
through  the  wool  of  railway  theorists  in  Europe,  though,  as  far  as 
Freemasonry  is  concerned,  these  Parisians  have  literature  enough, 
seventeen  Masonic  periodicals  being  published  here,  and  thirty-nine 
in  Germany. 

I  spent  Sunday  in  Paris  by  visiting  Pere  la  Chaise  Cemetery,  where 
the  graves  of  Marshal  Massena,  Arago,  Abelard  and  Heloise,  and  a 
host  of  others  demand  consideration.  Thence  to  Notre-Dame  Cath- 
edral, of  which  I  knew  so  much  in  youthful  days  from  reading  "  The 
Hunchback"  of  Victor  Hugo.  Thence  to  the  garden  of  the  Tuileries 
and  places  adjacent  The  Place  de  la  Concorde  is  the  most  splendid 
collection  of  objects  grand  and  sublime  that  I  ever  witnessed 

At  8  P.  M.  left  Paris  for  Marseilles ;  reached  it  at  noon  on  Monday, 
after  a  delightful  journey  through  the  heart  of  France.  But  as  the 
cars  have  no  heating  apparatus,  the  servants  brought  in  a  cylinder  of 
hot  water  every  hundred  miles  or  so,  and  put  it  under  my  feet,  giving 
me  a  vivid  apprehension  of  a  blow-up  every  minute.  Called  at  the 
office  of  the  great  steamship  line,  Messageries  Imperials  (the  Imperial 
Express  Co.),  and  took  second-class  ticket  to  Beyrout  At  Marseilles 
visited  The  Sailors'  Club,  a  philanthropic  institution,  on  the  model  of 
our  Young  Men's  Christian  Associations.  Also  visited  the  American 
Consul  to  have  passport  viseed;  but  he  assured  me  that  this  was 
unnecessary,  unless  I  was  going  to  Rome. 

On  Tuesday,  February  18,  at  5^  p.  M.,  I  sailed  from  Marseilles  in 
the  French  steamer  L'Ame'rique  (Tlie  America),  The  harbor  is  a 
marvel  of  natural  and  artificial  strength.  The  amount  of  shipping 
een  in  it  is  very  great,  the  iron  steamers  alone  being  a  host.  Only 
two  meals  a  day  are  served  on  these  boats,  viz.:  breakfast  at  10  A.  M., 
dinner  at  5  P.  M.  But  they  give  me  a  good  cup  of  coffee  and  a  crust 
of  bread  at  rising,  and  I  survive. 


:         fZ.       V      gj-r'^XS    '"-rL-.-r 

EOTH 

^~j  —  r  jb<       < 
F^Mi  ^  H        o 

J!BB  N   i-?rv          », 


r¥^^^-^ 

N-  K^'gA;?i.    -'V/.wh 

r^l-^^v^r  j— - 
?ck     ^v^x^-^r^.   .  . 


ABRAHAM'S  OAK  AT  HEBRON. 


STUt  :.S    AT  JERUSALEM.      SEE    PAGES   40^,    ETC. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

COASTING  THE  MEDITERRANEAN. 

passed  too  rapidly  through  Liverpool,  London,  Paris,  and 
Marseilles,  as  I  hare  said,  spending  but  a  day  in  each.  It 
was  a  temptation  hardly  to  be  resisted  to  devote  at  least  a 
month  to  revive  old  friendships,  and  form  new  ones  among 
the  Masons  of  those  cities.  But  I  had  a  higher  work  before  me- 
Moneys  had  been  entrusted  to  me,  a  sacred  deposit,  to  be  expended 
in  Syrian  Explorations,  so  I  listened  not  to  the  voice  of  the  tempter, 
but  turning  my  face  sternly  to  The  Orient  I  passed  on. 

I  left  Marseilles  February  18th,  on  the  French  steamship  L'Ame- 
rique  (America),  bound  for  Beyrout,  via  Palermo,  Messina,  Syra, 
Smyrna,  Rhodes,  Mersina,  Alexandrette,  Latakia,  and  Tripoli,  and 
due  at  Beyrout  March  3d.  On  L'Amtrique,  only  one  Masonic 
passenger  was  at  first  visible,  Capt.  E.  H.  Currey,  of  the  brig  0.  F. 
Eaton,  of  New  York,  his  membership  being  in  Halifax,  Nova  Scotia, 
and  one  officer,  Brother  Le  Maitre,  first  officer  of  the  steamer  UAme- 
rique.  He  is  a  resident  of  Marseilles,  and  particularly  well  informed 
in  the  details  of  French  Masonry.  Before  we  reached  Smyrna  another 
Mason,  a  fellow -passenger,  came  on  board. 

Passing  southeastwardly,  the  Straits  of  Gibraltar,  guarded  by  the 
Pillars  of  Hercules,  were  far  on  my  right  hand,  and  of  course  invis- 
ible. These  pillars,  named  respectively  Calpe  and  Abylo,  stood,  in 
the  days  when  giants  might  be  imagined,  the  twin,  prodigious  mon- 
oliths similar  in  purpose  to  the  artificial  pyramids. 

They  must  have  struck  the  gaze  of  the  astonished  and  awed  discov- 
erers navigating  this  silent  Mediterranean  as  the  colossal  pillars  on 
which  burned  the  double  lights  of  Baal.  So  to  the  Phoenician  sailors 
who  first  descried  and  then  stemmed  boldly  through  these  peaked  and 
majestic  straits, — so  to  those  men  of  Tyre,  whose  devices  were  the  fire- 
white  horns  of  the  globed  Ashtaroth,  appeared  these  monster  rocks, 
pillar-portals,  fire-topped  as  the  last  world-beacon  closing  in  that 
classic  sea. — Jennings'  Rosicrucians. 


44 


CORSICA    AND  NAPOLEON. 


COIN  WITH   PILLARS  OF  HERCULES, 
AND  MAP  OF  CORSICA. 


Passing  the  island  of  Corsica,  I  gave  some  hours  of  contemplation 
to  that  great  man,  our  Masonic  brother,  born  on  this  mountainous 
isle,  Napoleon  Bonaparte.  It  is  about  a  century  since  his  boyish  eyes 
ooked  forth  from  those  snowy  crags  over  the  beautiful  and  memo- 
rable sea  before  me.  We  need  not  indorse  all  his  actions  to  acknowl- 
edge him  as  a  brother.  A  Masonic  fraternity  was  founded  at  Paris  in 
1816,  by  the  adherents  of  the  then  exiled  Napoleon.  Its  ritual  com- 
prised three  degrees:  1.  Knight;  2.  Commander;  3.  Grand  Elect. 
The  third  degree  was  divided  into  three  classes:  1.  Secret  Judge; 
2.  Perfect  Initiate ;  3.  Knight  of  the  Oaken  Crown,  all  having  refer- 
ence to  Napoleon.  Bertrand,  then  a  voluntary  exile  with  his 
imperial  master  at  St.  Helena,  was  chosen  Grand  Master,  the  single 
aim  of  the  whole  being  the  restoration  of  Napoleon. — Macoy's  Ma- 
tonic  Cyclopedia.  (How  perfect  the  parallel  between  this  and  the 
various  Scotch  and  chapitral  rites  established  to  advance  the  resto- 
ration of  the  Pretender  to  the  English  crown.) 

Among  the  medals  struck  during  the  brilliant  career  of  Napoleon, 
there  are  several  that  commemorate  his  Masonic  affiliation ;  one, 
dated  December  31,  1807,  has  for  motto,  Nova  lux  oculis  effulsit  et 
ingens — new  and  great  light  bursts  upon  our  vision.  On  the  obverse 
is  a  cabinet  of  Masonic  emblems,  below  a  star  with  five  radiating 
cusps,  and  the  words  Lodge  Ecossaise  NapolSon  (Scottish  Napoleon 
Lodge).  On  the  reverse  we  have  in  French  the  words  Silence, 
Friendship,  Beneficence,  with  the  square  and  compass  grouped  in  an 
oak  crown,  and  the  words  (in  French)  Orient  of  Leghorn,  1807. 

In  memory  of  this  wonderful  man,  whose  patronage  of  the  Masonic 

titation  gave  it  an  impetus  in  France  and  Europe  which  it  never 

hw  lost,  I  begin  at  Corsica,  marked  "  A  "  on  the  map,  to  locate  the 


TRACK   OF  ST.   PAUL.  45 

names  of  American  Masons,  and  write  here  ten  eminent  in 
military  as  well  as  Masonic  fame,  viz. : — General  Hancock,  General 
Herron,  General  McClellan,  General  Hurlbut,  General  Wash- 
burn,  General  Butler,  General  Manson,  General  "Woodruff,  Gen- 
eral Zollicoffer,  General  Anderson.  [The  announcement  of  the 
death  of  this  excellent  man  reaches  me  while,  in  1871, 1  am  conning 
over  this  chapter.] 

An  excellent  book  upon  Corsica  is  that  of  Hon.  S.  S.  Cox,  pub- 
lished in  1870,  called,  A  Search  for  Winter  Sunbeams.  Before  this, 
the  island  had  been  terra  incognita,  an  unknown  country.  But 
Mr.  Cox  shows  that  it  is  the  connecting  link  between  the  two 
continents,  in  the  centre  of  the  basin  of  the  Western  Mediterranean. 
Its  mountains  are  midway  between  the  Atlas  range  and  the  Alps,  and 
unite  the  fruitful  vigor  of  the  former  with  the  rugged  grandeur  of 
the  latter,  and  the  vegetable  growth  of  each.  Like  the  Holy  Land, 
this  broken  region  produces  everything,  from  the  lemon,  orange,  and 
date,  to  the  pine,  ilex,  and  oak. 

Between  Italy  and  Sicily  I  first  struck  the  track,  figuratively  speak- 
ing, of  the  great  Christian  itinerant  and  martyr,  St.  Paul,  of  whom 
I  shall  have  more  to  say  in  this  work.  Here  I  began  to  realize  that 
I  was  entering  upon  Scriptural  scenes  and  events.  To  the  left, 
yonder,  almost  in  sight,  was  Eome,  then  and  now,  for  many  hundred 
years,  closed  to  Freemasonry,*  the  scene  of  Paul's  martyrdom,  the 
place  from  which  his  most  wonderful  epistles  were  dated.  Nearer 
was  the  Island  of  Caprera,  on  which  the  Grand  Master  of  Italian 
Masons,  Garibaldi,  was  then  a  political  prisoner.  He  might  have 
been  in  his  doorway  looking  out  upon  our  steamer  as  we  passed.  On 
the  right,  as  I  sailed,  lay  in  the  distance  Malta,  the  scene  of  chivalric 
exploits,  the  place  of  Paul's  shipwreck.  Before  me  were  the  straits, 
on  the  right  and  left  of  which  stood  those  ancient  terrors,  Scylla  and 
Charybdis. 

Sailing  near  Crotona,  on  the  eastern  coast  of  Ital),  I  recalled  the 
name  and  labors  of  Pythagoras,  commemorated  in  the  Freemason's 
Monitor  in  these  words:  "Our  ancient  friend  and  brother,  the 
great  Pythagoras,  who,  in  his  travels  through  Asia,  Africa,  and 
Europe,  was  initiated  into  several  orders  of  priesthood  and  raised  to 


*  Since  this  page  was  written  the  Grand  Lodge  of  Italy  has  been  transferred  to 
Rome,  the  Pope  having  lost  all  political  power,  and  only  remaining  in  Rome  on  suf 
ferance.  Verily  the  whirligig  of  time  makes  wondrous  changes ! 


46  PYTHAGOKAS. 

the  sublime  degree  of  a  Master  Mason."  Here,  at  Crotona,  his  cele- 
brated school  of  philosophy  was  established,  about  B.C.  539,  in  which 
the  sciences  enumerated  in  the  Fellow-Crafts  Lecture  were  incul- 
cated, vit,  grammar,  rhetoric,  logic,  arithmetic,  geometry,  music,  and 
astronomy.  From  Pythagoras  (often  erroneously  accented  on  the 
penult)  many  of  our  Masonic  lodges  are  named,  as  for  instance 
Crotona  Lodge  No.  339,  Ky. ;  and  any  number  of  Pythagoras  lodges. 

Masonic  honors  are  paid  to  Pythagoras  as  the  reputed  discoverer 
of  the  forty-seventh  problem  of  Euclid,  thus  acknowledged  in  the 
Monitor :  "  This  wise  philosopher  enriched  his  mind  abundantly  in  a 
general  knowledge  of  things,  and  more  especially  in  Geometry  or 
Masonry ;  on  this  subject  he  drew  out  many  problems  and  theorems, 
and  among  the  most  distinguished  he  erected  this,  which,  in  the  joy 
of  his  heart,  he  called  Eureka,  in  the  Grecian  language  signifying  / 
have  found  it!  and  upon  the  discovery  of  which  he  is  said  to  have 
sacrificed  a  hecatomb.  It  teaches  Masons  to  be  general  lovers  of  the 
arts  and  sciences."  In  the  degree  of  Eureka  Hiatus,  however,  this 
discovery  is  attributed  to  an  aged  brother,  Huramen,  who  lived  four 
hundred  years  earlier.  Damon  and  Pythias,  whose  friendship  was 
modelled  after  that  of  David  and  Jonathan,  were  pupils  of  the 
Pythagorean  school,  and  lived  about  B.C.  387.  Out  of  their  story 
some  ingenious  Americans  have  recently  modelled  a  "  secret  order," 
snrnamed  Knights  of  Pythias. 

In  memory  of  this  wonderful  man,  who  perhaps  did  more  to  shape 
the  philosophy  and  cultus  of  the  ancient  world  than  any  other,  not 
inspired  author,  I  have  located  here,  at  Crotona,  marked  "  B  "  upon 
the  map,  the  names  of  ten  Masonic  authors  of  modern  times  whose 
labors  run  parallel  with  those  of  the  sublime  Pythagoras,  viz.,  George 
W.  Chase,  James  B.  Taylor,  Giles  F.  Yates,  Wilkins  Tannehill, 
George  Gray,  J.  W.  S.  Mitchell,  A.  T.  C.  Pearson,  G.  W.  Steinbrenner, 
William  S.  Rockwell,  and  Sidney  Hayden. 

Passing  the  island  of  Paros,  I  reflected  upon  that  famous  fabric 
"which  was  supported  by  fourteen  hundred  and  fifty-three  columns 
and  two  thousand  nine  hundred  and  six  pilasters,  all  hewn  from  the 
finest  Parian  marble."  If  this  calculation  is  correct,  the  traffic 

Jtween  Joppa,  the  seaport  of  Jerusalem,  and  the  quarries  upon  this 

Paros,  must  have  been  very  extensive.    With  the  small 

Is  employed  in  Phoenician  commerce,  it  was  a  stupendous  labor 

>  convey  such,  and  so  many,  columns  and  pilasters  over  the  seas.  1 
had  no  opportunity  to  see  the  quarries.  The  island  itself  is  about 


PAROS   AND   ATHENS.  47 

thirty  miles  in  length.    The  following  outline  cut  will  give  an  idea 
of  it. 

In  memory  of  a  place  per- 
petuated in  Masonic  tradi- 
tion, marked  "  C  "  upon  the 
map,  I  locate  the  names  of 
ten  such  "  shafts  of  Parian 
marble"  as  King  Solomon 
would  have  approved,  viz., 
John  Sheville,  Jerome  B. 
Borden,  George  W.  Flem- 
ing, W.  J.  Millard,  James  MAP  OF  PAROS- 
Cruikshank,  Elisha  D. 
Cooke,  James  L.  Enos, 
George  D.  Norris,  Stillman  Blanchard,  and  James  Crooks. 

It  was  a  trial  to  my  feelings  to  skirt  thus  rapidly  the  coasts  of 
Greece ;  debarred  for  want  of  time  from  visiting  scenes  with  which 
my  studies  have  familiarized  me  from  boyhood.  Toward  the  Acrop- 
olis, at  Athens,  I  directed  a  longing  gaze.  The  pilot  guided  me  in 
pointing  my  finger  toward  it.  He  says  that,  like  the  hill  on  which 
Solomon's  Temple  stood,  it  is  most  accessible  from  the  northwest 
Robinson  says  that  on  the  oblong  area  of  its  levelled  surface  were 
collected  the  noblest  monuments  of  Grecian  taste.  It  was  the  very 
sanctuary  of  the  arts,  the  glory  and  the  religion  of  ancient  Athens. 
Here  stood  the  sixth  of  the  seven  ancient  wonders  of  the  world,  the 
ivory  and  gold  statue  of  Jupiter  Olympus,  erected  by  Phidias,  B.C. 
440,  which  measured  thirty-nine  feet  in  height. 

To  commemorate  this  ancient  wonder,  traditionally  associated  with 
Ancient  Operative  Masonry,  at  Athens,  marked  "  D  "  on  the  map,  I 
locate  the  names  of  ten  Masonic  characters  as  beautifully  propor- 
tioned in  their  moral  members  as  the  statue  of  Jupiter  was  in  the 
physical,  viz.,  Daniel  Sickels,  J.  L.  Gould,  George  Babcock,  John 
Robin  McDaniel,  Frank  Darrow,  Robert  N.  Brown,  William  Hacker, 
J.  J.  Rubottom,  L  N.  Stackhouse,  and  William  S.  Combs. 

In  conversation  with  our  Greek  pilot,  when  I  told  him  that  Solon, 
B.C.  600,  laid  it  down,  as  the  first  essential  condition  of  happiness, 
that  a  man  should  live  in  a  well-ordered  country,  he  shrugged  hia 
shoulders  Greek  fashion,  and  replied :  "  Lucky  for  Solon  he  does  not 
live  here  now !" 

At  Syra  we  had  taken  in  as  a  passenger  Bro.  R.  Westfield,  a  member 


10  FREEMASONRY   AT  SMYRNA, 

£/ 

of  Homer  Lodge  No.  806,  at  Smyrna.  As  we  were  to  lie  some  forty- 
eight  hours  in  Smyrna,  I  was  fortunate  in  securing,  through  Bro. 
Westfield,  an  introduction  to  Bro.  Franchia,  Worshipful  Master  of 
Homer  Lodge  No.  806,  and  through  him  to  a  large  number  of 
Masons.  A  meeting  was  promptly  called  at  8.30  P.M.  of  February 
25th,  where  I  found  about  twoscore  of  the  brethren,  and  enjoyed  an 
entertainment  as  novel  to  me  as  it  was  delightful.  I  am  sure  I  can 
never  forget  it  To  understand  my  description  the  reader  is  in- 
formed that  Smyrna  is  a  city  made  up,  in  its  foreign  elements,  of  rep- 
resentatives of  all  civilized  nations.  It  has  in  1872  at  least  seven 
lodges  and  two  Royal  Arch  Chapters,  together  with  a  Consistory  S. 
P.  R,  S.  32°.  The  names  of  the  various  Masonic  bodies,  so  far  as 
I  can  gather  them,  are  these : 

1.  St.  John',*  Royal  Arch  Chapter   U.  D. — The  dispensation  for 
this  chapter  was  granted  by  the  G.  G.  High-Priest  of  the  G.  G.  Royal 
Arch  Chapter  of  the  United  States,  May  6th,  1863.    The  period  for 
the  return  of  the  dispensation  (September,  1865)  having  been  per- 
mitted, inadvertently,  to  elapse  without  the  performance   of  that 
necessary  duty,  the  labors  of  the  chapter  temporarily  ceased ;  but 
movements  were  making  to  secure  a  new  dispensation  at  once,  and 
a  warrant  in  September  following.    The  elements  incorporated  in  this 
chapter  are  of  the  very  best    They  work  the  American  rituals  pure 
and  simple,  and  have  good  apartments  fitted  up  expressly  for  Royal 
Arch  use.* 

2.  A  Chapter  (name  unknown  to  me). — Working  Rosicrucian  Ma- 
sonry, under  authority  of  the  Italian  Grand  Orient     Of  this,  in  my 
brief  stay,  I  could  not  secure  reliable  reports.    It  had  lately  been  set 
to  work. 

3.  Homer  Lodge  No.  806.— Warranted  in  1860.    This  has  forty-five 
or  fifty  members,  and  is  now  the  oldest  working  lodge  in  Smyrna. 

t  is  deservedly  ranked  as  one  of  the  best  lodges  on  the  English 
Register,  outside  the  mother-country.  The  rituals  are  the  English 
standards;  furniture  and  equipments  of  the  lodge  the  same. 

4.  St.  George  Lodge  No.  1,015.— Authorized  in  1866  by  the  Grand 
Lodge  of  England.    This  lodge  has  about  sixty-five  members.    The 

It  it  pleasant  to  add  that,  owing  to  representations  I  made  to  the  proper  author 
renewed  the  dispensation  of  this  chapter  in  1868,  and  the  companions  are 
h  briskly  at  work.    The  chapter  is  reported,  in  the  proceedings  of  the 
•eneral  Grand  Royal  Arch  Chapter,  September,  1871,  as  "  St.  John's,  Smyrna,  Tur- 
key, May,  1863.     September  18,  1868." 


SMYKNA,  FROM  THE  SEA. 


1'ALMiKA:   TADJiOK. 

4 


HYDE   CLARKE, 
Formerly  resident  at  Smyrna. 


FREEMASONRY  AT  SMYRNA.  51 

rituals  are  in  the  Greek  language,  but,  as  I  understand,  translated 
literally  from  the  English.  The  Greek  population  of  Smyrna  is  very 
large  and  respectable. 

5.  Decran  Lodge  No.  1,014. — Warranted  by  the  Grand  Lodge  of 
England  in  1864.    This  lodge  has  about  sixty  members.     The  rit- 
uals are  the  same  as  those  of  St.  George,  but  the  membership  is 
Armenian — a  class  here  embracing  many  of  the  wealthiest  people  of 
the  city. 

6.  Stella  Ionia  Lodge  No.  — . — Warranted  by  the  Grand  Lodge  of 
Italy  in  1864.    This  lodge  has  about   seventy-five  members.    The 
rituals  are  Italian.    I  was  unable  to  get  much   information  concern- 
ing this  lodge. 

7.  Eleusinian  Lodge  No.  987. — This  was  intended  as  a  summer 
lodge  at  Ephesus,  but  its  officers  and  members  resided  in  Smyrna. 

8.  Sion's  Lodge. — This  was  organized  at  the  close  of  the  year  1870, 
of  Jewish  brethren. 

9.  St.  John's  Lodge  No.  952. — Working  under  English  authority. 
All  these  Smyrna  lodges  hold  their  meetings  in  the  same  room ;  a 

commodious,  well-ventilated  apartment,  with  handsome  cornices, 
abundant  ante-chambers,  etc.,  etc.  The  arrangements  of  an  English 
lodge  will  doubtless  be  novel  to  many  of  my  readers.  There  is  no 
Altar,  but  a  pedestal  directly  in  front  of  the  Worshipful  Master 
serves  the  purpose  of  one.  The  emblems  usually  delineated  on  the 
Master's  carpet,  such  as  the  Ashlars,  Globes,  Tokens  of  Service,  and 
the  like,  are  presented  here  in  the  form  of  tangible  objects  grouped 
around  and  in  front  of  the  Master's  station,  and  form  very  attractive 
images  to  the  eye;  more  so,  indeed,  than  merely  painted  emblems. 
The  stations  of  the  officers  are  substantially  the  same  as  ours. 

The  form  of  notification  sent  out  by  the  Worshipful  Master  was 
this :  "  An  Emergency  General  Meeting  of  Masons  will  be  held  to- 
day, Tuesday,  the  25th  of  February,  at  8£  P.M.,  which  all  members  are 
requested  punctually  to  attend.  The  business  of  the  evening  will  be 
to  receive  two  American  Masonic  Brethren."  Some  of  the  names 
minuted  for  the  Tyler's  use  on  this  Summons  are:  Thomas  Janson, 
Secretary;  F.  Stano,  F.  W.  Spiegelthal,  W.  Shotton,  A.  P.  Raboly, 
James  Rees,  G.  Perrin,  T.  Papworth,  S.  Papps,  E.  Parodis,  J.  O'Con- 
nor, N.  Nubarian,  G.  Mollhausen,  Louis  Meyer,  Arthur  Lawson,  Dr. 
Kossonis,  Issigonis,  St.  Joly,  Fres.  Joly,  Ed.  Joly,  Jo.  Hadgi,  C.  R. 
Gefter,  T.  Hatton,  L.  Haco,  E.  Georganspula,  J.  Ganon,  G.  Fyfe,  J. 
Fraser,  Th.  Franghia,  F.  Franghia,  A.  Fontrier,  St.  Dirutzuyan,  J 


02  A  JOYFUL  OCCASION. 

Manusso  Dani,  Paul  Clement,  C.  P.  Charlton,  Manoli  Cattimati,  F 
Batty,  Jacob  Berchten,  J.  Bottomly,  R.  Barnard,  James  Albon.  The 
t ariety  of  languages  represented  in  this  nomenclature  will  forcibly 
strike  the  reader. 

This  "Emergency  Lodge"  was  opened  on  the  degree  of  Entered 
Apprentice  at  8.30  P.M.,  it  being  then  1.44  P.M.  at  La  Grange,  Ken- 
tucky—difference in  time,  six  hours  thirty-six  minutes.  It  was 
pleasant  to  observe  that  as  each  brother  prepared  himself  "  to  serve  " 
hia  Divine  Master  in  the  opening  and  work  of  the  lodge,  he  "  girded 
himself"  (as  intimated  in  Luke  xvii.  8)  with  his  apron,  the  badge  of 
innocence,  and  quietly  entered  "  the  sacred  retreat  of  friendship," 
the  S.  S.  of  Him  who  fashioneth  our  hearts  alike.  (Ps.  xxxiii.  15.) 

A  committee  of  six,  two  bearing  large  swords  of  state  and  wands, 
waited  upon  me  in  the  reception-room  and  escorted  me  in.  A  Salute 
of  Honor  was  given  (the  "  Private  Grand  Honors  "  as  we  call  the 
Salute),  and  I  was  inducted  into  the  Oriental  chair,  and  welcomed 
in  an  eloquent  manner  by  Brother  Carrere.  My  reply,  which  occu- 
pied about  thirty  minutes,  was  translated  into  French  by  Brother  C. 
G.  Carre're,  LL.D.,  a  barrister  of  high  eminence  here.  The  graceful- 
ness and  ease  of  his  rendering  cannot  be  surpassed.  His  manner  is 
polished,  yet  dignified  and  commanding. 

I  began  by  solemnly  saluting  the  assembly  in  the  name  of  tne 
speaker ;  of  the  Craft  Universal ;  and  of  T.  G.  A.  0.  T.  U.,  at  whose 
right  hand  are  eternal  pleasures.  (Ps.  xvi.  11.)  I  told  them  how 
numerous  is  the  great  Fraternity  in  the  United  States,  and  of  what 
classes  of  citizens  it  is  composed.  I  assured  them  that  we  Ameri- 
jcans  are  in  general  an  inquiring  people,  and  having  been  taught  in 
our  Masonic  traditions  that  Freemasonry  originated  in  Palestine, 
some  four  thousand  of  them  had  united  in  making  me  in  some  sort 
a  representative  for  the  purpose  of  initiating  a  series  of  investiga- 
tions into  the  sacred  land,  and  its  ruins,  scattered  so  abundantly  and 
BO  mournfully  there.  I  told  them  that  I  was  then  upon  my  journey 
to  the  Holy  Land.  I  recalled  to  their  memory  one  greatly  beloved 
myrna,  who,  I  regretted  to  find,  had  returned  to  England  after 
oing  a  good  work  for  Freemasonry  in  the  Levant,  viz.,  Bro.  Hyde 
Dlark ;  and  I  assured  them  that  my  mission  had  his  valued  appro- 
bation. In  a  later  chapter  of  this  book  I  will  give  his  portrait.  I 
informed  them  that,  by  promise  to  my  constituents  at  home,  the  re- 
aults  of  my  researches  and  a  full  account  of  my  travels  would  be 
pnMished  for  general  perusal,  and  that  copies  should  be  placed  in 


THE   KISS   OF   PEACE.  53 

their  hands.  I  told  them  that  in  my  literary  labors  1  had  composed 
a  number  of  poems,  a  few  of  which  I  would  proceed  to  recite. 

Then  I  gave  them  Tiie  Level  and  Square  ;  Our  Vows  ;  One  Hour 
with  You ;  and  The  Gavel  Song ;  all  of  which  seemed  to  give  them 
-pleasure. 

Eespouses  were  made  by  Bro.  Carrere,  Bro.  Staab,  and  others  in 
English,  and  one  at  considerable  length  in  Greek  by  Bro.  Dr.  S. 
Karacoussis,  a  Greek  physician  of  eminence  here.  This  was  inter- 
preted to  me  by  Bro.  Carrere.  The  learned  doctor  takes  the  same 
view  of  the  Oriental  origin  and  antiquity  of  Freemasonry  that  we  do. 
His  theory  of  Masonic  patriotism  and  benevolence  is  very  lofty  and 
.grand.  He  encouraged  me  greatly  in  my  Eastern  researches,  as 
indeed  did  they  all.  An  invitation  was  tendered  to  me  to  spend 
some  time  here  next  summer,  which  I  accepted,  and  we  arranged  for 
.a  Masonic  Picnic  to  be  held  June  24th,  1868,  at  ancient  Ephesus, 
about  twenty-five  miles  south  of  Smyrna.  This  plan,  however,  failed, 
•  owing  to  my  adopting  a  different  route  on  my  return  home  in  June. 

A  call  was  then  made  upon  me  to  close  the  lodge  strictly  upon 
the  American  system,  which  I  did.  Then  we  adjourned  to  refresh- 
ments, from  which  I  managed  to  withdraw  so  as  to  be  on  board  the 
steamer  by  midnight.  As  I  had  spent  the  day  mostly  in  visiting 
bazaars,  climbing  to  the  great  castle  in  the  rear  of  the  city,  and  per- 
ambulating it  in  all  directions,  it  may  readily  be  imagined  that  I  was 
in  a  condition  demanding  repose. 

As  one  evidence  of  the  national  variety  that  made  up  this  meeting, 
I  mention  the  names  of  Bro.  Laudon,  an  American ;  Westfield,  a 
German;  Franghia,  Cassimarti,  Dirutzuyan,  Fontrier,  Georgan- 
spula,  Staab,  Karacoussis,  Hadji,  Issigonis,  Kubariau,  Raboly,  Steph- 
ana, Jedeschi,  Jimoni,  Thukides,  and  Venezeans,  of  the  Greek, 
French,  Armenian,  and  English.  The  only  American  brother  resi- 
dent here,  whose  acquaintance  I  formed,  was  Brother  Landon,  origi- 
nally from  Boston,  Worshipful  Master  of  the  Lodge  at  Ephesus ; 
more  than  forty  years  a  Mason,  and  in  whom  the  sacred  fire  was 
burning  unimpaired.  His  death  in  1870  left  a  wide  hiatus  in  that 
-Masonic  and  social  circle. 

I  cannot  leave  the  subject  of  my  visit  to  Smyrna  without  recalling 
ithe  truly  Masonic  earnestness  manifested  by  all.  The  Oriental  usage 
>of  meeting  and  parting  ivith  a  kiss  of  peace  (Romans  xvi.  16),  while 
it  seems  strange  in  others,  appears  strangely  appropriate  among 
these  Levant  Masons.  When  I  mentioned  casually,  in  the  reception- 


M 


HISTORY   OF  SMYRNA. 


room,  that  the  first  money  which,  as  a  little  boy,  I  ever  posses8ed,  } 
gave,  in  1826,  to  the  cause  of  suffering  Greece,  the  Greek  brethren 
present  almost  smothered  me  with  kisses.  And  when  I  said  farewell 
to  the  party  who  accompanied  me  to  the  ship  on  the  26th,  the  same 
salutations  were  exchanged.  I  confess  that  I  never  before  felt  the 
universality  of  Freemasonry  as  now,  and  never  estimated  so  highly 
its  mighty  powers  for  good. 

One  ceremony  they  perform  in  these  Smyrna  lodges  I  may  relate 
without  a  violation  of  confidence.  Whenever  in  my  remarks  to  the 
Lodge  I  used  the  name  of  Deity,  all  my  auditors  arose  and  stood 
before  that  "shadowed  image"  to  which  the  sweet  bard  of  Scottish 
Freemasonry  refers,  as 

"  That  hieroglyphic  bright 
Which  none  but  Craftsmen  ever  saw." 

AB  every  reader  can  learn  what  he  wants  to  know  by  looking 
for  "Smyrna"  in  the  Cyclopedia,  I  occupy  but  short  space  with  a 
description.  This  city,  styled  the  ornament  of  Asia  (agalma  tees 
Asian),  was  celebrated  by  the  ancients  as  one  of  the  fairest  and 
noblest  cities  of  Ionia.  It  was  founded,  probably,  by  a  woman  of 
the  same  name,  an  Amazon,  of  the  Cumaeans,  about  B.C.  1015,  the 
period  when  King  David  was  "preparing  with  all  his  might,  for  the 
house  of  his  God,  gold,  silver,  brass,  iron,  wood,  onyx-stones  and  all 
manner  of  precious  stones  and  marble  stones  in  abundance."  (1  Chr. 
xxix.  2.)  Although  ten  times  destroyed  by  fierce  throes  of  nature 
and  fiercer  men,  Smyrna  has  ten  times  risen  from  her  ruins,  and  is 
still  the  largest  commercial  city  of  Asia  Minor,  promising  even  to 
eclipse  Constantinople.  Herodotus,  B.C.  444,  says,  "  it  has  the  finest 
sky  and  climate  in  the  world,  and  a  soil  extremely  productive." 
Great  names  are  associated  with  Smyrna.  Pythagoras  was  bora 
about  B.C.  570  at  Samos,  only  a  few  miles  south  of  Smyrna,  and 
must  have  spent  much  of  his  early  life  here.  Homer,  about  B.C. 
962,  was  perhaps  born  here.  St.  Paul  unquestionably  had  one  of 
his  preaching  stations  at  Smyrna,  and  here  was  that  one  of  the 
seven  churches  of  Asia  to  which  "  the  beloved  Disciple,"  the  good 
8t  John  the  Evangelist,  he  who  bare  record  of  the  word  of  God  and 
the  testimony  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  of  all  things  that  he  saw 

Jev.  i.  2),  and  whom  all  loving  Masons  claim  as  a  brother,  wrote 
thia  thrilling  epistle:  "These  things  saith  the  first  and  last,  which 
was  dead  and  is  alive.  I  know  thy  works  and  tribulation  and  poverty 


ANTIQUITIES  OF  ASIA   MINOR  55 

(but  thou  art  rich),  and  I  know  the  blasphemy  of  them  which  say 
they  are  Jews  and  are  not,  but  are  the  synagogue  of  Satan.  Fear 
none  of  those  things  which  thou  shalt  suffer;  behold,  the  devil  shall 
cast  some  of  you  into  prison  that  ye  may  be  tried;  and  ye  shall  have 
tribulation  ten  days;  be  thou  faithful  unto  death  and  I  will  give  thee 
a  crown  of  life."  (Eev.  ii.  8-10.)  And  here  that  grand  old  evangelist 
Polycarp  (what  an  appropriate  name,  the  seed-abounding  /)  preached 
and  labored  for  seventy-four  years,  making  good  testimony  of  his 
faith  by  suffering  death  at  the  stake  A.D.  167,  under  the  reign  of 
Marcus  Aurelius  Antoninus.  His  tomb,is  still  shown,  designated  by 
a  fine  old  cypress-tree. 

Along  the  east  side  of  the  city  is  a  beautiful  plain  full  of  villages. 
Two  lines  of  railway  run  out  in  that  direction ;  one  finished  to  Aidm 
(Tralles)  by  way  of  Ephesus,  eighty  miles;  the  other  to  Magnesia 
and  Kassaba,  sixty  miles.  Trains  run  daily  over  these  lines  at  the 
rate  of  twenty-five  miles  an  hour. 

An  account  of  the  sieges  this  city  has  suffered,  and  the  terrible  dis- 
asters consequent  upon  its  numerous  captures  and  destruction, 
would  fill  a  volume.  Operative  Masons  will  be  interested  to  know 
that  when  Timour  the  Tartar  (Taimour-lang)  captured  Smyrna, 
A.D.  1402,  after  a  blockade  of  fourteen  days,  he  slew  all  the  inhabitants 
and  demolished  the  houses.  In  rebuilding  a  portion  for  military 
purposes,  he  ordered  all  the  heads  of  the  slain  to  be  built  into  the 
walls  with  mortar  and  stone.  History  fails  to  say  what  sort  of  ma- 
terials these  proved  to  be. 

Smyrna  and  the  country  around  it  abound  in  antiquities,  the 
best  description  of  which  I  have  seen  being  that  in  "The  Seven 
Churches  of  Asia,"  by  A.  Svoboda,  1869,  with  an  introduction  by  our 
good  Mason  brother  Prof.  H.  B.  Tristam,  of  England.  A  copy  of  this, 
with  twenty  photographs  pasted  on  the  corresponding  leaves,  is  in  the 
possession  of  Col.  H.  J.  Goodrich,  Chicago,  Illinois.  Amongst  these 
ruins  the  most  remarkable  is  the  sculpture  made  by  Sesostris  at 
Kara-Bell,  not  long  after  those  cut  on  the  rocks  near  Beyrout,  which 
I  shall  minutely  describe  in  their  place.  These  were  only  discovered 
in  1839,  although  described  by  Herodotus  more  than  2,300  years  ago. 
It  is  sculptured  in  relief,  sunk  in  a  panel  cut  into  the  perpendicular 
surface  of  a  massive,  calcareous  hard  rock,  in  height  about  seven 
feet.  The  image  is  represented  in  profile,  looking  to  the  east.  The 
inscription,  as  described  by  Herodotus,  although  now  obliterated  by 
the  tooth  of  time  in  thirty-four  centuries,  read  thus:  "I  conquered 
this  country  by  the  might  of  my  arms." 


56  LEAVES  FROM  A  DIARY. 

In  the  vicinity  of  Smyrna,  six  miles  from  Sardis,  are  the  remains 
of  the  largest  tomb  in  the  world,  that  of  Algattes,  father  of  the  opu- 
lent Croesus,  to  whom  the  adage  "  rich  as  Croesus  "  applies.  This  im 
mense  monument  is  3,800  feet  in  circumference  and  very  lofty.  The 
base  is  of  very  large  stones,  the  rest  earth.  Herodotus  says  it  was 
erected  by  tradesmen,  mechanics,  and  strumpets,  and  rather  oddly 
adds  that  the  latter  did  the  most  of  it ! 

The  far-famed  mausoleum  of  Mausolus,  King  of  Caria,  erected  by 
Artemisia,  his  queen,  and  the  second  of  the  Seven  Wonders  of  the 
ancient  world,  was  at  Halicarnassus,  not  far  from  Smyrna.  It  was 
built  B.C.  350.  Artemisia  invited  all  the  literary  men  of  the  age  to 
compete  for  the  best  elegiac  panegyric  upon  the  deceased,  and  ad- 
judged the  prize  to  Theopompus,  B.C.  357.  The  statue  of  Mausolus, 
taken  from  these  ruins,  is  now  in  the  British  Museum  at  London. 

To  commemorate  this  model  of  all  funeral  piles,  I  locate  at  this 
place,  marked  on  the  map  "I,"  the  names  of  ten  eminent  Masons, 
Grand  Masters,  and  Past  Grand  Masters,  viz.:  Theodore  S.  Parviu, 
Samuel  M.  Todd,  D.  H.  Wheeler,  Hiram  Bassett,  J.  M.  S.  McCorkle, 
John  Scott,  D.  C.  Cregier,  Wm.  M.  Wilson,  Thomas  A.  Doyle, 
William  E.  Pine,  Philip  C.  Tucker,  Jr. 

In  passing  through  Smyrna,  the  first  Oriental  city  I  had  ever 
visited,  I  was  struck,  as  all  travellers  are,  with  the  unexpected 
variety  of  scenes,  the  people  of  so  many  colors  and  creeds,  and  the 
customs,  so  novel  to  an  American.  A  few  pages  from  my  note-book 
will  serve  to  show  how  my  mind  was  affected,  and  will  exhibit  my 
method  of  jotting  down  information  during  my  whole  journey  through 
the  East: 

Greek  boatmen  in  pantalettes ;  they  face  the  way  they  row ;  oars 

fastened  to  rowlocks,  and  weighted  to  accommodate  feeble  wrists  • 

>nces  of  labor,  low;  handkerchiefs  around  head;  talk  in  strident 

tones  as  if  quarreling;  gesticulate  like  St.  Vitus;  merchandise;  piles 

adder  on  docks;  cotton  bales  hooped  with  five   iron  bands; 

h i  whole  day's  ramble  felt  as  if  in  lanes  and  by-ways,  and  that 

presently  come  out  into  a   broad   street,  but  never  did; 

eta  only  eight  to  twelve  feet  wide;  Camel,  solemn,  stately-step- 

nt,  serious  ship  of  the  desert,  clipper-rigged,  his  spongy 

Feet  sprawling  all  over  fee  wide  paving-stones,  as  though  to  jrralp 

tern    and  secure  a  footing;  each  wears   a  nose-bag  like   a  huge 

koir  ;  always  five  camels  in  a  row,  following  a  little  donkev  who 

»  a  bigger  one  on  his  back:  the  processioS  of  six  is  coupled  by 

"f  fc'Mymg  them  neck  to  neck ;  number  six  wears  a  large 

ell,    having    inside  of  it  a  small    bell  with    a  clapper;    un- 


LEAVES   FROM   A   DIABY.  57 

musical  sounds;  camels  loaded  with  madder  in  bales;  also  with  cot- 
ton ;  each  carryii  g  two  large  round  bags  of  cotton  of  about  300  Ibs. 
each,  not  well  compressed ;  these  loads  do  not  shorten  the  three-feet 

steps  or  reduce   the  stately  stepping,  as  regular  as    Mrs.  M 's 

clock  that  hangs  over  the  fireplace  at  home;  his  long,  snaky 
neck  level  as  the  Level  of  the  Senior  Warden  ;  caravan  of  500  of  them 
just  in  from  Persia,  and  whole  city  full  of  them  scattered  in  folio  w- 
ings  of  five;  Turkish  Carrier  with  wooden  frame  on  his  back 
supports  a  great  load ;  a  barrel  of  flour  being  strapped  on  it,  he  leans 
forward,  nearly  horizontal,  grasps  tightly  a  stick  fastened  by  a 
string  to  his  neck,  and  walks  on0  with  a  long,  quick  stride  as  silently 
.  and  solemnly  as  the  camel  himself;  such  a  rheumatism  as  he  will 
have  when  he  gets  to  be  sixty;  the  markets  called  bazaars;  no  sign- 
boards; numbered  in  Arabic  andEngligh;  every  man's  stock  is  open 
in  front,  with  no  counter  or  railing;  you  just  sit  down  on  the  shop- 
floor,  in  front  of  the  merchant,  and  trade;  each  stock  worth  from 
$50  to  .$500  all  told;  nobody  sells  more  than  one  line  of  goods;  first 
is  a  tobacco-store,  then  drygoods,  thread,  tobacco  again,  fruits,  brass 
vessels  (very  bright  and  tasty  too) ;  jewelry,  mostly  of  the  cheap  and 
•nasty  sort;  fruits,  tobacco,  calico,  woolen  caps  with  silk  tassels; 
small  stock  of  drugs;  hardware  from  Birmingham,  England  (such 
scissors!  to  cut  your  nails  will  take  the  edge  oh0!);  tobacco,  matches, 
•confectionery,  four  in  a  row ; — and  so  on  with  tobacco  as  a  staple; 
only  one  butcher-shop  an  hour ;  bread  in  loaves  and  rings,  nice,  and 
of  good  quality ;  confectioneries  particularly  well  got  up ;  no  cakes 
nor pison  things,  as  in  American  shops;  every  hundred  yards  or  so 
an  open  court,  mostly  paved,  with  fountain  in  centre,  and  trees  of 
orange,  palm,  etc.;  in  Armenian  quarters,  front  doors  open,  display  haD 
with  settees,  paved  elaborately  with  pebbles ;  set  mosaically  in  cement ; 
Armenian  Graveyard,  with  drawings  on  gravestones,  to  show  dead 
;men's  business  on  earth, — barbers'  tools,  tools  of  carpenters,  stone- 
.masun,  blacksmith,  etc.,  etc. ;  Turkish  Mosque  ;  at  high  twelve  people 
pray ;  first  washing  feet,  hands,  arms,  neck  and  head,  and  scouring 
.mouth,  ears,  etc. ;  my  servant  Joseph,  being  a  Jew,  debarred  admis- 
sion, stayed  outside  and  watched  my  boots  while  I  went  in;  had  to 
(go  in  stocking  feet  (stockings  had  holes  in  them) ;  worshipers  bare- 
footed ;  no  furniture  nor  seats ;  matted  with  ragged  mats ;  galleries, 
but  nobody  there;  regular  barn  of  a  place;  no  preaching;  no  singing, 
no  nothing;  those  who  spoke  to  one  another  whispered ;  kept  my  hat 
on  according  to  orders ;  the  door  was  a  quilted  leather  aflair  that  hung 
tapestry-fashion;  no  arrangements  for  warming  or  lighting;  heard 
jio  muezzin ;  crescent  on  top  of  the  church ;  Turkish  School,  all  boys, 
no  girls ;  noise  startling,  gesticulations  marvellous,  scholars  all  leave 
their  shoes  outside,  perfectly  safe,  the  fifty  pairs  not  worth  a  dime  for 
the  lot ;  sight  of  my  fur  cap  delighted  the  boys  ;  Women ;  Turkish 
women  wear  cloth  over  face,  other  women  not;  Armenian  women 
expose  breasts  indecorously;  Old  Fort  on  hill;  built  by  Genoese; 
magnificent  view  from  summit ;  Mt.  Cybele  with  its  snowy  cap  and 


5g  THE  SHIP  OF  THE   DESERT. 

manv  traditions;  the  fort  a  grand  piece  of  labor  and  skill,  but 
entirely  in  ruins;  looking  southeast,  imagine  St  Paul  coming  to  the 
top  of  "the  hill,  to  take  a  first  view  of  Smyrna  preparatory  to  preach- 
ing here;  Turkish  Graveyard  ;  turban  on  gravestones  of  men  ;  rose- 
buds on  women  ;  inscriptions  written  from  right  to  left,  and  slope 
upwards,  a  modern  innovation,  I  am  told;  many  epitaphs  in  gilt; 
none  handsome;  graveyard  full  of  broken  columns,  once  doubt- 
less forming  parts  of  ancient  temples,  etc.;  six  enormous  ones  lately 
exhumed  by  Exploration  Society,  curiously  carved  work  upon  them  -r 
had  stones  thrown  at  me  here  by  schoolboys,  but  only  because  my 
guide  was  a  Jew;  Fountains;  a  Turkish  hobby  founding  fountains,. 
and  one  that  excited  my  gratitude ;  the  city  is  full  of  them ;  all  free ; 
Streets  cleaner  than  I  e'xpected,  and  well  paved,  but  the  boulders  are 
rude,  and  hurt  the  feet;  Fruits,  etc..  figs,  seedless  raisins,  pomegran- 
ates, carob  pods,  garlic,  cauliflowers,  shelled  almonds,  oranges,  lemons, 
dates,  fig-paste,  English  walnuts,  hazelnuts,  dates,  delicious  prunes, 
and  very  many  others ;  Costumes;  everybody's  nationality  and  religion 
recognized  by  his  dress,  handsomest  race  is  the  Armenian  ;  but  few 
beggars;  group  negroes  playing  cards ;  soldiers  with  French  muskets, 
percussion  locks,  carried  at  half-shoulder  shift ;  but  little  importunity 
among  merchants  to  get  my  custom;  street-brokers  everywhere 
with  a  peck  or  two  of  money  ready  for  exchange ;  in  changing  a  twenty- 
franc  piece  they  only  charged  two  cents  premium  ;  gave  me  a  pint  of 
native  money  m  copper  and  alloyed  silver,  very  base ;  only  two  tipsy 
men,  and  they  "but  just  a  drappy  in  the  ee',"  as  poor  Burns  used 
to  say. 

Over  the  old  Greek  church,  in  which   Polycarp  is  said  to  have 
bed,  are  the  words   (in  ancient  Greek),  Polycarp  the  Divine 
Shepherd*  *      *      *      And  so  on  for  a  dozen  pages  for 

quantity. 

The  streets  of  Smyrna  are  ludicrous  parodies  on  the  word !  More 
crooked  than  those  of  Boston,  more  filthy  than  those  of  Cairo 
(Illinois),  they  are  so  narrow  that  a  loaded  camel  fills  one  up  even* 
Shakespeare  must  have  had  a  description  of  them  before  penning 
that  laughable  thing  in  the  Merchant  of  Venice  (Act  ii.,  Scene  2)r 
"••  one  of  his  characters  gives  these  directions  to  a  sorely-puzzled 
traveller:  " Turn  upon  your  right  hand  at  the  next  turning;  but  at 
the  next  turning  of  all,  on  your  left  Marry,  at  the  very  next 
turning,  turn  of  no  hand,  but  turn  down  indirectly  to  the  Jew's 

marvel  at  the  answer :  "  'Twill  be  a  hard  way  to  hit !" 
&*ing  here  the  first  caravan  of  camels  I  had  ever  beheld  (some 
"•  hundred  of  them,  just  in  from  Persia,  loaded  with  cotton),  I  am 
reminded  of  the  Eastern  legend  commemorating  the  extreme  homeli- 
ness of  this  beast    "  The  first  man  who  beheld  a  camel  fainted  with 


FUiiD   PASHA,   THE   MASON. 

dismay;  the  second  one  drew  tremblingly  near;  the  third  roped  Mm" 
and  put  him  to  work ! "  In  good  sooth,  he  is  a  failure  in  animal 
architecture,  reminding  us,  as  compared  with  the  other  beasts,  of  the 
lodge-tyler  compared  with  the  other  officers. 

To  commemorate  the  Masonic  spirit  manifested  in  this  ancient 
Masonic  and  ecclesiastical  city  of  Smyrna,  marked  on  the  map  "  E," 
nine  honored  names  of  British  craftsmen,  whose  names  will  survive 
them,  are  located  here,  viz.,  Hyde  Clark,  Stephen  Barton  Wilson,  W. 
J.  Hughan,  D.  Murray  Lyon,  Charles  Purton  Cooper,  Matthew 
Cooke,  Charles  Warren,  E.  T.  Kogers,  and  V.  W,  Bate. 

It  was  not  in  my  route  to  visit  Constantinople  ;  but  I  was  assured 
by  well-informed  gentlemen  at  Smyrna  that  some  of  the  highest 
officials  of  the  empire  are  acknowledged  members  of  the  Masonic 
fraternity  there.  Amongst  these  I  name  that  distinguished  officer, 
Fuad  Pasha,  who  deceased  the  following  year.  The  Sultan  himself 
is  an  avowed  friend  to  this  society.  A  few  years  since  he  directed 
one  of  his  secretaries  to  become  a  Mason,  and  the  secretary's  report 
upon  the  aims  and  principles  of  the  institution  was  so  favorable  as 
to  secure  the  imperial  favor.  Of  this  the  great  officers  of  the  empire 
are  well  aware. 

Constantinople  is  intimately  associated  in  our  minds  with  terrible 
conflagrations,  especially  that  of  1870,  which  was  one  of  a  series  that 
have  devastated  this  devoted  city  for  many  generations.  A  traveller 
in  1610,  referring  to  the  sad  fire  of  October  14,  1607,  remarked  that 
he  did  not  know  to  what  fate  or  misfortune  this  city  was  subject  in 
suffering  so  much.  At  that  time  three  thousand  houses  were  burned 
to  their  foundations. 

I  left  Smyrna  on  Wednesday,  the  26th  February,  still  one  week's 
journey  from  Holy  Land.  Passing  the  island  of  Samos,  I  again  re- 
call the  history  and  labors  of  the  sublime  Pythagoras,  born  here  B.C, 
570. 

Samos,  says  Anthon  in  his  Classical  Dictionary,  is  an  island  of  the 
JEgean,  lying  off  the  lower  part  of  the  coast  of  Ionia,  and  nearly  op- 
posite the  Trogilian  promontory.  The  intervening  strait  was  about 
seven  stadia  in  its  narrowest  part.  (A  stadium  was  the  eighth  of  an- 
English  mile.)  The  first  inhabitants  were  Carians  and  Leleges.  The 
temple  and  worship  of  Juno  contributed  much  to  its  fame  and  afflu- 
ence. A  tunnel  was  carried  through  the  mountain  seven  stadia,  to 
convey  water  from  a  distant  fountain  to  the  city.  A  mole,  twenty 
fathoms  deep  and  two  stadia  long,  defended  the  harbor. 


SAMOS. 


The  circuit  of  Samos  was  600  stadia,  equal  to  75  English  miles, 
It  yielded  almost  every  kind  of  Levantine  produce,  except  wine. 
The  city  of  Samos  was '  exactly  opposite  the  Trogilian  promontory 
and  Mount  Mycale.  The  port  was  secure  and  convenient  for  ships. 
The  town  stood  chiefly  in  a  plain  rising  gradually  from  the  sea.  The 
island,  sailing  north  from  Patmos,  is  very  conspicuous,  so  much  so 
that  the  ancients  styled  any  very  lofty  place  Samos.  It  is  the  most 
conspicuous  object,  not  only  in  the  Ionian  Sea  but  the  JSgean  also. 
The  following  cut  will  give  an  idea  of  its  shape. 

At  so  appropriate  a  locality  as  Samos, 
marked  "F"  on  the  map,  I  place  the 
names  of  Thomas  J.  Corson,  Daniel  B. 
Bruen,  W.  B.  Langridge,  A.  H.  Cope- 
land,  P.  H.  Taylor,  John  Leach,  J. 
McCormick,  Cornelius  Moore,  A.  J. 
Wheeler,  and  John  A.  Morris. 

MAP  OF  SAMOS  Passing  off  the  coast,  a  little  ways  west 

of  Ephesus,  I  note  the  fact  that  Eleusi- 
nian  Lodge  No.  987,  of  which  the  vener- 
able Brother  Landon  is  W.  M.,  holds  its 

Sessions  here,  although  the  city  at  present  is  but  a  poor  place.  I  had 
promised  the  Smyrna  Masons  to  return  to  them  in  June  next  and 
spend  the  24th,  the  anniversary  of  our  patron-saint  John  the  Bap- 
tist, in  a  Masonic  pic-mc  among  the  ruins  of  Ephesus.  It  would  have 
been  a  rare  experience  indeed.  Here  at  Ephesus  were  many  of  the 
most  celebrated  structures  of  antiquity,  including  that  third  "  Won- 
der of  the  World,"  the  Temple  of  Diana.  This  noted  edifice  was 
erected  B.C.  552,  at  the  common  charge  of  all  the  Asiatic  States,  its 
chief  architect  being  Ctesiphon  ;  two  hundred  and  twenty  years  were 
expended  in  the  work.  The  Temple  was  425  feet  by  225.  It  was 
supported  by  127  marble  columns  60  feet  high,  and  thick  in  pro- 
portion, each  weighing  150  tons.  Each  column  was  a  present  from  a 
«eparate  king.  This  building  was  set  on  fire  by  Eratostratus  the 
«ame  night  Alexander  was  born,  viz.,  B.C.  356.  It  was  rebuilt,  but 
•finally  destroyed  by  the  Goths  A.D.  256  to  262. 

The  foundations  of  this  Temple,  like  those  of  King  Solomon's,  were 
artificial,  although  for  a  very  different  reason.    The  soil  being  marshy, 
deep  beds  of  charcoal  and  fleeces  of  wool  were  laid  in  trenches,  and 
•o  a  substantial  base  was  formed.      Pliny  describes  the  difficulty  en- 
countered  in  moving  and  raising   the  enormous  blocks  of  stone 


EPHESUS.  61 

wrought  into  this  Temple,  a  problem  which  exercises  the  wits  of  all 
who  traverse  Egypt  and  the  East,  and  to  which  I  shall  give  attention 
further  on.  In  the  present  instance  he  says :  "  The  architect  contrived 
to  raise  the  architraves  by  means  of  bags  of  sand  piled  upon  an  in- 
clined plane  to  the  height  of  the  columns  (60  feet)  and  by  gradually 
emptying  them  the  blocks  fell  to  their  assigned  places." 

The  roof  of  this  Temple  was  of  cedar,  like  Solomon's,  the  doors  of 
cypress  (Solomon's  were  of  olive),  and  the  stairway  of  vine- wood.  As 
the  grapevines  in  the  East  are  often  twelve  to  fifteen  inches  in  di- 
ameter, this  is  credible.  All  the  wood  before  using  was  glued  to- 
gether and  left  four  years  to  season.  So  well  was  this  seasoning 
executed  that  the  wood  of  the  Second  Temple  was  found  by  Muci- 
anus,  B.C.  75,  to  be  as  good  as  new,  although  then  400  years  old. 
So  the  wood  in  the  old  church  at  Bethlehem  seems  now  as  good  as- 
new,  although  more  than  1,500  years  old.  Upon  the  whole,  this 
Temple  was  so  beautiful  that  Philon  burst  out  in  rapture  concern- 
ing it,  saying,  "  it  is  the  only  house  of  the  gods;  you  will  think  when 
you  see  it  that  the  gods  have  left  heaven  and  come  to  live  here!" 
Its  position  was  at  the  head  of  the  port  facing  me,  as  I  sail  past,  and 
it  shone  there  like  a  meteor.  But  now  the  sea  has  receded  three 
miles  eastward  and  left  a  reedy,  miasmatic  marsh  between  us.  The 
very  site  of  the  Temple  of  Diana  is  in  dispute,  and  the  city  itself  is  a 
vast  and  almost  indistinguishable  ruin. 

The  supply  of  marble  for  these  works  was  of  course  immense. 
Three  ancient  quarries  were  open,  those  of  Ctesiphon  and  Paros,  to 
which  reference  has  been  made  on  preceding  pages,  and  Proconessus. 
But  the  question  of  freight  was  the  puzzle ;  the  transport  of  so  much 
stone  would  demand  whole  fleets  of  vessels,  although  the  distance,  a» 
compared  with  that  traversed  by  the  fleets  of  Hiram,  was  insignifi- 
cant. The  difficulty  was  solved  in  the  nick  of  time,  by  the  discovery 
of  a  quarry  of  fine  marble  on  Mount  Prion,in  the  vicinity  of  Ephesus, 
brought  to  light  by  the  butting  off  of  a  piece  by  the  horns  of  a  ram  ! 

At  this  ancient  Queen  City  of  the  Levant  Ephesus,  marked  on  the 
map  "  H,"  I  locate  the  following  Masonic  names :  Charles  W.  Moore, 
H.  G.  Eeynolds,  David  Clark,  F.  G.  Tisdall,  G.  R  £ouley,. Henry  D. 
Palmer,  James  Fenton,  S.  D.  Bayless,  Joseph  B.  Hough,  and  E.  S. 
Fitch . 

And  there  the  people  believe  our  good  December-Saint  John  lies 
buried  behind  the  high  altar.  But  his  tomb,  when  opened,  was  found 
to  have  lost  its  body ;  the  pure  flesh  of  the  apostle  of  peace  had 


f,.j  THE  GOLDEN  SABBATH  AT  PATHOS. 

turned  to  manna,  or  the  body  itself  had  been  translated  to  heaven, 
leaving  that  Celestial  bread  of  the  Royal  Arch  in  its  place.  This 
grave  had  been  made  under  his  own  instructions,  while  alive,  and  in 
his  death-day  he  walked  there  voluntarily  and  laid  himself  down 

in  it 

Here,  too,  he  led  his  adopted  mother,  Mary  (John  xix.  26,27),  who, 
at  the  age  of  seventy-two  years,  followed  Jesus  to  the  celestial  courts. 
Passing  along,  on  the  26th,  by  the  island  of  Patmos,  I  read  with 
uncommon  interest  that  collection  of  imagery,  thrilling  and  inimi- 
table, which  makes  up  the  Apocalypse  or  Revelation  of  St.  John,  in 
which  the  Apostle  saw  "  the  spiritual  city  and  all  her  spires  and 
gateways  in  a  glory  like  one  pearl,"  and  where  on  that  celebrated  Lord's 
day  he  was  "in  the  spirit,"  his  raptured  soul  dwelling  in  the  midst  of 
opal  and  amethyst  and  chalcedony  and  sardonyx  and  gold. 

Much  of  these  figures  is  embodied  in  various  degrees  of  the  Scotch 
Rite.  Entering  into  the  spirit  of  this  strange  book,  it  reads  as  though 
a  woman  were  peeping  into  a  lodge-room,  witnessing  the  ceremonies 
of  Freemasonry,  and  trying,  with  raptured  pen,  to  record  them ! 
How  I  should  like  to  spend  a  week  here  and  read  it  through.  The 
aspect  of  the  island  is  peculiarly  rugged  and  bare,  which  explains 
why  it  was  selected  as  a  place  of  exile  for  St.  John,  as  the  practice 
was  to  choose  rocky  and  desolate  islands  for  such  purposes.  Only 
one  palm-tree  remains  upon  it,  although  so  numerous  were  they  1,000 
years  ago,  that  the  name  Palmosa  was  given  to  the  island.  So  Jericho, 
anciently  called  "  the  city  of  palm-trees  "  (Deut.  xxxiv.  3),  has  now 
only  one  palm  remaining.  This  island,  now  called  Patino,  in  which 
God  opened  the  pearly  gates  of  paradise,  is  divided  equally  by  a  very  nar- 
row isthmus,  making  the  whole  something  in  the  shape  of  an  hour-glass. 
The  following  engraving  gives  a  correct  idea  of  its  appearance. 

Here  dwelt  St  John  the  Evangelist,  a 
prisoner  "for  the  Word  of  God  and  for 
the  Testimony  of  Jesus  Christ  (Rev.  i. 
9),  during  part  of  the  reign  of  Domitian, 
probably  from  A.D.  95  to  97,  when  he 
was  nearly  a  hundred  years  old. 

To  commemorate  a  place  so  sacred  ia 
Masonic  and  Biblical,  I  locate  at  Patmos, 
marked  "  G "  on  the  map,  the  names  of 
MAP  OP  PATMOS.           ten  clergymen,  eminent  both  in  Masonic 
and  religious  relations,  viz.,  J.  H.  Fitch, 


RHODES.  63 

Hiraru  A.  Hunter,  D.  H.  Knickerbacker,  Robert  Collier,  Charles  Losh- 
ier,  C.  G.  Bowdish,  John  Trimble,  Jr.,  Eobert  McMurdy,  J.  S.  Dennis, 
William  S.  Burney. 

I  arrived  at  Rhodes  Feb.  27,  and  remained  a  few  hours  off  the  city, 
but  not  long  enough  to  go  on  shore.  I  recalled  some  facts  which 
icommend  the  island  particularly  to  the  attention  of  Knights  Tem- 
plars. It  was  the  refuge  of  the  Christian  Knights  when  they  were 
finally  driven  from  the  Holy  Land  in  the  fifteenth  century.  Those 
gallant  warriors  fortified  it  so  strongly  and  defended  it  so  gallantly 
as  to  resist  for  a  considerable  period  the  utmost  power  of  the  Otto- 
man Empire ;  and  when  at  last,  overborne  with  numbers,  and  weak- 
ened by  famine  and  the  unintermitting  assaults  of  their  enemies, 
they  were  compelled  to  surrender,  they  capitulated  upon  the  most 
honorable  conditions,  being  allowed  to  withdraw  from  the  island 
with  all  their  possessions,  and  to  go  to  Malta. 

Rhodes  is  specially  worthy  of  Masonic  study,  as  being  the  site  of  the 
fifth  of  the  seven  ancient  wonders  of  the  world,  the  vast  brazen  image 
of  the  sun,  styled  the  Colossus  of  Rhodes.  This  was  seventy  cubits 
high  (about  sixty-five  feet).  It  was  erected  by  Chares  of  Lindus, 
.about  B.C.  290,  but  only  stood  about  sixty  years,  being  thrown  down 
by  an  earthquake,  about  B.C.  224.  St.  John  doubtless  saw  this 
remarkable  piece  of  art,  and  it  may  have  suggested  to  his  mind  the 
.allegory  in  the  tenth  chapter  of  his  Revelation :  "  And  I  saw  another 
mighty  angel  come  down  from  heaven,  clothed  with  a  cloud,  and  a 
rainbow  was  upon  his  head,  and  his  face  was  as  it  were  the  sun, 
and  his  feet  as  pillars  of  fire ;  and  he  had  in  his  hand  a  little  book 
open ;  and  he  set  his  right  foot  upon  Ihe  sea  and  his  left  foot  upon 
the  earth." 

The  following  engraving  will  give  a  clear  idea  of  this  island. 

It  is  about  forty  miles  long,  and  one- 
third  the  same  in  breadth.  Its  popula- 
tion is  about  25,000,  largely  Greeks  and 
•Jews.  The  modern  city  only  covers  one- 
fourth  the  area  of  the  ancient  city,  whose 
majestic  ruins  fill  the  vista  as  I  gaze 
upon  them  from  the  deck  of  the  ship; 
but  few  traces  of  the  glory  of  ancient 

Rhodes  are  visible.     Instead  of  the  in-  MAP  QP  RHODES. 

numerable  galleys  that  once  swarmed  out 
of  yonder  port,  like  pigeons  from  their  cotes,  and  commanded  all 


64  TARSUS. 

these  seas  bj  their  numbers  and  daring,  nothing  has  come  forth 
during  the  four  hours  I  have  lain  off  this  harbor,  save  a  few  skiffs 
set-king  to  take  passengers  ashore,  a  flat-bottomed  barge  for  our 
freight,  and  a  custom-house  boat  manned  by  ten  red-capped  sailors, 
and  commanded  by  an  indolent  Turk,  which  rows  round  and  round 
us  during  our  stay  here  to  see  that  we  do  no  smuggling.  Probably 
fidelity  to  his  trust"  equals  that  of  the  custom-house  officer  on 
the  wharf  at  Smyrna,  who  lazily  examined  my  box  of  figs  and  the 
roll  of  stationery  which  1  had  purchased  in  the  bazaars,  and  com- 
promised all  informalities  concerning  them  by  accepting  two  pias- 
tres (eight  cents)  for  his  own  pocket!  I  venture  to  say  that  that 
fat  gentleman  yonder  would  "  pass  "  a  whole  cargo  for  a  moderate 
compensation  without  a  blush.  The  name  of  the  island,  Ehodes, 
probably  derived  from  Ros,  a  rose,  referring  to  the  multitude 
ami  variety  of  that  sweet  blossom  here. 

Waiting  upon  the  slow  movements  of  the  customs  officers,  I  find 
time  to  read  Acts  xxi.,  where  Paul,  having  parted  the  day  before 
with  the  Christian  brethren  of  Miletus  and  Ephesus,  "  came  with  a 
straight  course  unto  Coos,  and  the  day  following  Rhodes,"  and  so  on 
through  his  subsequent  journey  to  Jerusalem,  Caesarea,  Malta,  and 
Koine! 

To  commemorate  a  place  so  intimately  associated  with  the  glory 
of  Christian  Knighthood,  I  locate  here  at  Rhodes,  marked  "  K"  upon 
the  map,  the  names  of  ten  Masons,  eminent  in  the  Christian  Orders- 
of  Knighthood,  viz.:  J.  Q.  A.  Fellows,  William  S.  Gardner,  William 
E.  Uthrop,  John  A.  Lefferts,  G.  Fred  Wiltsie,  Orrin  Welch, 
A,  V.  H.  Carpenter,  E.  D.  B.  Porter,  Alfred  E.  Ames,  and  George  L. 
Otis. 

Remaining  twelve  hours  at  Mersina,  February  29  (this  being  leap- 
year),  I  am  told  that  this  town  lies  at  the  mouth  of  the  river  Cyd- 
nus,  and  is  only  six  miles  from  ancient  Tarsus,  the  birth  place  of  the 
great  Paul,  the  man  who  was  set  to  be  a  light  to  the  Gentiles,  that 
he  should  be  for  salvation  unto  the  ends  of  the  earth  (Acts  xiii. 
47.) 

From  childhood  I  have  been  accustomed  to  consider  the  Apostle 
Paul  the  man  who,  next  to  Moses,  has  exercised  the  greatest  influence 
upon  the  minds  of  his  race.  Being  thus  within  six  miles  of  his 
birthplace,  I  cannot  but  follow,  in  imagination,  his  footsteps  hence, 
to  the  theological  school  of  Gamaliel  at  Jerusalem ;  thence  on  a 
fanatical  errand  to  Damascus;  thence  miraculouslv  confounded  and 


SAINT  PAUL.  65 

converted  to  the  Christian  faith ;  thence  on  journeys  hither  and 
thither,  establishing  churches,  bearing  painful  testimonials  "  in  labors 
more  abundant ;  in  stripes  above  measure ;  in  prisons  more  frequent; 
in  deaths  oft;  of  the  Jews,  five  times,  receiving  forty  stripes  save  one> 
thrice  beaten  with  rods;  once  stoned;  thrice  suffering  shipwreck • 
a  night  and  a  day  in  the  deep;  in  journeyings  often,  in  perils  of 
waters,  in  perils  of  robbers,  in  perils  by  his  own  countrymen,  in  perils 
by  the  heathen,  in  perils  in  the  city,  in  perils  in  the  wilderness,  in 
perils  in  the  sea,  in  perils  among  false  brethren ;  in  weariness  and 
painfulness;  in  watchings  often;  in  hunger  and  thirst;  in  fastings 
often,  in  cold  and  nakedness."  (2  Cor.  xi.) 

Whatever  one  may  think  of  the  particular  cause  to  which  this  man 
gave  his  learning,  labor,  and  life,  no  one  can  help  respecting  him  for 
the  fidelity  he  evinced  in  the  performance  of  duty.  And  surely  no 
Mason  who  has  dropped  the  tear  over  the  martyred  Hiram  can 
refuse  the  sympathetic  drop  to  the  memory  of  Paul;  or  co  share  the 
triumphant  glow  which  inspired  him  when  he  wrote  in  his  old  age 
to  Timothy  :  "I  am  now  ready  to  be  offered,  and  the  time  of  my 
departure  is  at  hand.  I  have  fought  a  good  fight ;  I  have  finished 
my  course ;  I  have  kept  the  faith  ;  henceforth  there  is  laid  up  for  me 
a  crown  of  righteousness,  which  the  Lord,  the  righteous  judge,  shall 
give  in  that  day."  (2  Tim.  iv.)  Mighty  soul !  hast  thou  not  satisfied 
those  immortal  longings  ere  this!  Gathered  with  the  saints  at  the 
River  of  Life,  is  not  thy  weariness  refreshed  and  thy  thirst  satisfied  ? 

I  don't  fancy  Kenan's  views  upon  religious  subjects,  whatever  he- 
may  know  in  science  and  literature,  but  I  must  say  that  his  concep- 
tion of  St.  Paul's  character  is  fine  and  just.  He  describes  his  soul  as 
growing  great  and  expanding  without  ceasing ;  a  man  of  boundless 
vigor,  unlimited  capacity,  will,  and  action.  His  Life  of  St.  Paul 
might  be  expurgated,  and  so  made  a  valuable  book. 

"We  sighted  the  Syrian  shores  on  the  first  day  of  March,  the  open- 
ing hours  of  spring,  the  day  being  but  a  few  hours  old.  At  Alexan- 
drette,  or  Scandaroon,  I  was  permitted  to  go  on  shore  and  remain  for 
some  hours.  My  first  act  was  to  fall  upon  my  knees  and  praise  T. 
G.  A.  0.  T.  U.  that  now  at  length,  near  the  going  down  of  my 
earthly  sun,  I  am  permitted  to  stand  upon  a  portion  of  earth  so  hal- 
lowed by  Biblical  and  classical  recollections  as  this.  At  last  my  desires 
are  gratified.  One  of  the  fixed  purposes  of  my  whole  life,  to  visit  the 
Holy  Land,  is  fulfilled.  Since  I  began  to  read  with  understanding  the 
Sacred  Writings,  that  purpose  has  been  kindled  into  a  longing  desire. 

5 


THE   NORTHEAST  CORNER. 

in  my  entrance  into  Freemasonry  (March,  1846),  I  formed  a  re* 
ofution  that,  if  the  Grand  Architect  of  the  Universe  would  spare  mj 
life,  and  open  a  way  for  me,  I  would  as  eurely  set  foot  upon  the  sa- 
cred soil  before  my  Masonic  career  should  be  closed. 

Alexandrette  is  a  good  place  at  which  to  enter  the  Holy  Land, 
being  the  "  northeast  corner "  of  the  Mediterranean  Sea,  and  con- 
tiguous to  several  localities  of  thrilling  memory.  Around  yonder 
point,  to  the  northwest,  a  short  two  days'  journey,  is  Tarsus,  the  birth- 
place of  Paul  A  little  nearer  is  the  battle-field  of  Issus,  wherein, 
B.C.  333,  Alexander  achieved  that  victory  which,  in  effect,  was  the 
conquest  of  the  world.  South  of  this,  and  only  thirty  miles  from 
me,  is  Antioch,  "  where  the  disciples  were  first  called  Christians." 
East  of  me,  and  about  the  same  distance,  is  the  purely  Oriental  city 
of  Aleppo;  beyond  which  is  Baalbec,  and  beyond  that,  Damascus. 
The  road  over  those  mountains,  now  heavily  banked  in  snow,  haa 
been  trodden  again  and  again  by  the  conquerors  of  the  earth,  and  by 
the  Evangelists  of  Jesus.  It  is  in  every  respect  a  good  beginning 
point  for  my  survey  of  the  Holy  Land. 

There  was  once  a  pigeon-express  maintained  between  this  place 
and  Bagdad. 

The  literary  history  of  the  world— Masonic,  scientific,  religious, — 
moves  toward  the  Orient,  as  the  march  of  empires  to  the  Occident. 
Unplowed  hinds  are  the  search  and  prize  of  nations ;  destroyed  lands, 
of  scholars.  In  the  spread  and  conquests  of  Grecian  heroes,  He- 
brew conception  found  fresh  expression ;  the  thoughts  of  the.  East 
were  wedded  to  the  words  of  the  West 

To  commemorate  this  northeast  corner  of  the  Mediterranean, 
marked  "M"  upon  the  map,  I  have  placed  the  ten  following  names, 
all  well-known  in  the  Masonic  records  as  Past  Grand  Masters,  viz. : 
diaries  W.  Nash,  0.  H.  Irish,  Jno.  Adams  Allen,  Charles  Scott,  S. 

[.  Johnson,  John  H.  Brown,  Thomas  R  Austin,  Reuben  Mickel, 
James  M.  Howry,  and  John  B.  Fravel. 

On  Monday,  the  2d  March,  we  called  successively  at   Latakia, 

the  ancient  Laodicea,  the  seaport  of  Antioch,  a  few  miles  in  the  in- 

srior,  famous  now,  like  Gebal,  only  for  its  tobacco,  and  Tripoli, 

B  at  this  time  (1872)  is  stationed,  as  Kamiakam,  our  good 

Jther  Noureddin  Effendi,  whose  portrait  adorns  a  subsequent 
page  of  this  volume. 

The  terraced  houses  of  Tripoli,  bathed  in  bright  Oriental  sunshmc. 
lewed  through  the  clear  ethereal  atmosphere  peculiar  to  this 
••laical  and  Biblical  clime,  are  beautiful. 


REFLECTIONS  AT  APPROACHING  SYKIA.  67 

The  only  available  passage  for  a  railroad  eastward  from  this  coast 
is  said  to  lead  out  of  Tripoli,  and  from  here  the  line  has  been  en- 
gineered to  the  East  Indies  by  an  English  company.  The  highest 
point  to  be  surmounted  is  only  1,500  feet,  and  the  ascent  is  without 
very  heavy  grades. 

Going  southward  here  the  Lebanon  mountains  rise  higher  and 
higher  as  we  advance.  We  pass  ancient  Gebal,  marked  "  0  "  on  the 
map,  from  whence  some  of  the  most  experienced  Masons  went,  at  the 
call  of  King  Solomon,  to  build  the  Temple  at  Jerusalem.  Going 
south  I  begin  to  wonder  at  the  narrowness  of  the  little  shelf  of  level 
land,  the  vast  and  lofty  Lebanon  behind,  the  illimitable  Mediterra- 
nean before  it,  which,  under  the  name  of  Phoenicia,  exercised  such 
influence  upon  the  minds  and  fortunes  of  the  human  race.  This 
•nation  was  here  when  Abram  came  down  from  Mesopotamia,  B.C. 
1921,  and  even  at  that  early  period  was  far  advanced  in  the  knowl- 
edge of  the  arts  and  sciences.  This  narrow  shelf  was  then  crowded 
with  towns  and  cities. 

The  sky  so  pure  and  bright,  the  moon  and  stars  shining  with  such 
celestial  beauty,  the  morning  air  peculiarly  bracing  and  tonic — this 
whole  journey  from  Marseilles  has  been  a  delicious  recreation. 

My  reflections  on  approaching  the  coast  of  Syria  were  colored  by 
the  expectations  upon  which  my  mission  was  founded.  To  trace  up 
to  their  sources  ancient  habits,  modes  of  thought,  forms  of  speech, 
emblems  whose  original  meaning  is  obscured  in  the  lapse  of  thirty 
centuries ;  to  tread  upon  the  sites  of  ancient  cities,  from  whence 
sprung  all  science  and  art,  and  even  the  knowledge  of  letters  itself; 
to  descend  into  rock-hewn  sepulchres,  whose  tenants  3,000  years  ago 
were  laid  in  their  everlasting  rest  with  the  same  symbolical  rites  that 
will  some  day  accompany  my  own  interment ;  and,  above  all,  to  read 
the  Bible,  the  whole  Bible,  in  the  land  of  the  Bible,  and  having  and 
wanting  no  other  Guide ;  to  travel  through  the  length  and  breadth  of 
this  country  with  this  Guide  in  my  hand ;  such  was  the  work  for 
which  I  girded  up  my  loins  on  the  1st  day  of  March,  and  invoked 
the  blessing  of  the  Most  High  that  I  might  accomplish  it,  all  of  it, 
as  I  had  proposed. 

The  night-scenes  on  the  Mediterranean  are  delightful  to  contem- 
plate. One  of  them,  in  which  I  walked  the  steamer's  deck  till  mid- 
night, can  never  be  forgotten.  It  is  best  described  in  the  words  of 
another :  "  Above  a  vast  hemicircle  of  clouds  shone  a  little  crescent 
moon  fading  into  her  last  quarter,  and  like  a  luminous  summit  to  an 


08  rmrEBABY 

immense  pyramid  of  shade.    Over  the  waves  she  traced  a  path  &f 
trembling  light" 

Early  on  Tuesday  morning,  the  3d  of  March,  we  cast  anchor  in 
the  Bay  of  Beyrout  (St  George's  Bay),  and  so  this  first  division  of 
iny  volume  ends.  It  only  remains  to  add  a  sketch  of  the  whole 
route,  the  chapters  following  not  being  arranged  in  chronological 
order. 

ITINEBABY. 

Left  New  York February  2d. 

Arrived  at  Liverpool "        14th. 

"            London "        14th. 

M           Paris "        16th. 

"            Marseilles. "        17th. 

Left                  "       «       18th. 

Arrived  at  Palermo "       20th. 

Messina "        21st 

Syra. «       23d. 

Smyrna «       24th. 

Left                 "       «       26th. 

Arrived  at  Rhodes. «.       27th. 

Mersina. «       28th. 

Alexaiidrette March  1st. 

Latakia «      2d. 

Tripoli «      2d. 

Beyrout «      3d. 

Whole  distance  from  Marseilles  to  Beyrout,  2,093  miles. 

Reached  Gebal March  17th. 

Damascus «      26th. 

Tyre  April  14th. 

The  Cedars «    26th. 

J°PPa May  1st 

Jerusalem «    3d. 

Nazareth «    IT^h 

Tibnin '.'.  «    21st.' 

Alexandria. june  15th> 

"    16th. 

Brmdisi «    25th, 


Cairo.. 


28th. 


JulySd. 
Southampton  ...........  « 


EXPENSE   ACCOUNT.  6§ 

Reached  New  York July  18th. 

«        La  Grange,  Kentucky....  "    21st 

A  note  of  passage-money  paid  for  one  passenger,  New  York  to 
Beyrout,  may  be  interesting  to  close  the  chapter : 

Steamer,  New  York  to  Liverpool,  1st  class  passage    $100  00 

Railway,  Liverpool    to   London,    2d          "  9  00 

"        London    to  Marseilles,    1st        "  47  00 

Steamer,  Marseilles  to  Beyrout,    2d         "  •  125  00 


$281  00 

These  fares  being  paid  in  gold,  I  have  added  such  a  premium  aa 
makes  the  amounts  equal  to  Federal  currency,  February,  1868. 


/•*•» 


TUB    ARABIC    ALPHABET. 
(Bead  from  right  to  Itft.) 


THE   PYRAMID  OF   CHEOPS. 

Original  Measurements.— Length  on  each  side  is  753  feet;  perpen 
diculai  height,  480  feet.    13J  acres. 

Not  useless :  cold  must  be  the  heart 
Can  linger  here  in  critic-mood, 
And  fail  to  recognize  the  good, 

And  look  and  sneer,  and  so  depart 

Not  useless :  were  it  but  to  prove 

What  aspirations  are  in  man  ; 

Almost  divine  this  mighty  plan- 
Almost  an  impulse  from  above. 

Not  useless  :  were  it  but  to  stir 
The  sense  of  awe  within  the  breast: 
What  grandeur  does  the  pile  attest! 

Is  it  a  mortal's  sepulchre  ? 

Not  useless  :  no ;  while  life  abide, 
The  measure  of  the  soul,  to  me. 
Its  utmost  stretch  of  thought  shall  be 

My  memories  of  the  Pyramid ! 


DIVISION  SECOND-TYRE. 


2fil  actum  credens,  dum  quid  super esset  agendum. — LUCAN  :  Nothing  is  font 
while  anything  is  left  undone. 

Thus  saith  the  Lord  God,  I  am  against  thee,  oh  Tyrus,  and  will  cause  many 
nations  to  come  up  against  thee,  as  the  sea  causeth  his  waves  to  come  up. 

And  they  shall  destroy  the  walls  of  Tyrus,  and  break  down  her  towers  :  I  will 
also  scrape  her  dust  from  her  and  make  her  like  the  top  of  a  rock. 

It  shall  be  a  place  for  the  spreading  of  nets  in  the  midst  of  the  sea.  Ezekie! 
ii.  3-5.) 

Patriots  were  here  in  freedom's  battle  slain ; 

Priests,  whose  long  lives  were  closed  without  a  stain; 

Bards,  worthy  him  who  breathed  the  poet's  mind  ; 

Founders  of  arts  that  dignify  mankind ; 

And  lovers  of  our  race  whose  labors  gave 

Their  names  a  memory  that  defies  the  grave. 


I  CHAPTER  V. 

PBOM  BEYBOUT  TO  TYBB. 

N  Deuteronomy,  xxxiv.,  Moses  is  described  as  taking  hi» 
panoramic  view  of  the  Land  of  Canaan,  from  the  southeast. 
The  sacred  record  affirms  that  he  "went  to  the  top  of 
Pisgah,  and  the  Lord  showed  him  all  the  land  of  Gilead 
unto  Dan,  and  all  Naphtali,  and  the  land  of  Ephraim  and 
Manasseh,  and  all  the  land  of  Judah  unto  the  utmost  sea."  In  a 
map  racing  a  subsequent  chapter  may  be  found  this  stand-point  of 
Moses,  nearly  east  of  the  northeast  corner  of  the  Dead  Sea,  and  about 
fifty  miles  east  of  Jerusalem. 

My  stand-point  for  a  first  view  of  Palestine  is  in  the  extreme 
northwest  of  the  Holy  Land,  at  Beyrout,  diagonally  opposite  that  of 
Moses.  Between  the  two  lies  the  whole  land  of  Canaan,  our  respec- 
tive stand-points  being  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  apart. 

This  city  of  Beyrout,  which  constituted  headquarters  during  my 
Oriental  explorations,  has  no  place  in  ancient  Masonic  history,  al- 
though it  is  now  (1872)  the  site  of  the  OD-ly  lodges  in  this  country.  It 
IB  indeed  scarcely  mentioned,  if  at  all,  in  the  Bible.  It  is  interesting 
to  Freemasons,  however,  as  lying  on  the  south  side  of  the  beautiful 
sheet  of  water  which  I  shall  style  the  Bay  of  the  Rafts.  It  is  called 
here  St.  George's  Bay,  from  the  fabulous  encounter  of  that  hero  with 
the  dragon,  said  to  have  occurred  at  this  place.  In  Spenser's  Faerie 
Queen,  the  long-drawn  battle  is  graphically  described.  My  name  of 
"The  Bay  of  Freemasonry,  or  Bay  of  the  Rafts,"  is  derived  from  its 
ancient  use  for  making  up  the  rafts  or  "  flotes  "  of  cedars  provided 
by  King  Hiram  for  Solomon's  Temple.  They  were  sent  out  from  this 
place,  as  I  shall  show  in  subsequent  pages,  to  the  port  of  Tyre,  one  * 
hundred  miles  south.  My  headquarters  at  Beyrout  were  in  the 
hospitable  mansion  of  Brother  Samuel  Hallock,  a  member  of  Lodge 
No.  9,  Philadelphia,  Pa.,  and  as  thorough  and  genuine  a  Mason  as 
ever  old  Number  Nine  turned  out  from  its  busy  Atelier.  He 
accommodates  me  with  a  room,  for  which  I  supply  myself  with  a  few 
pieces  of  furniture;  and  so  in  all  my  sojourning  through  Holy 


HEADQUARTERS, 

Land  I  have  an  abode  to  which  I  can  turn  as  home.  Many  a  profit- 
able hour  did  we  two  stranger  Masons  enjoy  in  mutual  confidences 
and  the  interchange  of  useful  thoughts.  Brother  Hallock  is  the 
electro  typist  of  the  printing-house  connected  with  the  American 
Protestant  Mission,  and  a  contributor  to  the  New  York  Journal  of 
Commerce.  The  condition  of  Freemasonry  in  Beyrout,  and  the 
elder  lodge  (Palestine  Lodge  No.  415),  will  be  fully  detailed  in  a  sub- 
sequent chapter. 

I  commence  this  second  division,  therefore,  at  Beyrout,  where  I 
landed,  March  3d,  1868.  The  place,  as  remarked  above,  has  no  par- 
ticular mention  in  Biblical  or  Masonic  history,  yet  its  traditions 
imply  that  it  is  one  of  the  oldest  of  Phoenician  cities.  Having  the 
best  harbor  that  exists  along  the  coast  (although  at  the  best  it  is 
only  third-rate),  Beyrout  has  been  adopted  as  the  seat  of  the  general 
consulates  of  all  the  great  powers.  Being  connected  by  a  turnpike 
road  eighty-four  miles  long  with  Damascus,  and  by  telegraph  with 
points  north,  south,  and  east,  it  enjoys  the  best  business  of  the  coast, 
and  has  risen  rapidly  from  a  population  of  10,000  to  60,000.  This 
growth  more  resembles  one  of  our  "Western  railroad  towns  than  any- 
thing in  this  old-fogy  land.  Beyrout  has  outgrown  gates  and  walls, 
and  is  spreading  abroad  into  the  suburbs  on  all  sides.  Spelled  in 
the  geography  "Beirut,"  it  is  properly  pronounced  Bay-root.  Its 
latitude  is  33°  54'  north,  longitude  35°  29'  east  of  Greenwich.  On 
the  east  runs  the  river  Beyrout,  called  by  Pliny,  eighteen  hundred 
years  ago,  the  Magoras — in  dry  seasons,  however,  a  mere  creek.  The 
town  stands,  like  Joppa,  upon  a  head-land,  called  in  Arabic  Ras, 
(meaning  head],  which  projects  about  five  miles  into  the  sea  from  the 
foot  of  Mt.  Lebanon. 

This  head-land,  with  the  mountains  behind  it,  is  that  which  would 
first  strike  the  eye  of  Phoenician  sailors  coming,  as  I  did,  from  the 
westward.  For  here  the  mighty  Lebanons  exhibit  their  vast  propor- 
tions, five  to  ten  thousand  feet  high,  in  the  most  impressive 
grandeur.  I  doubt  whether  all  Syria  affords  another  such  view  as 
these  white-capped  heights,  striking  the  clouds  with  their  hoary  tops 
and  planting  their  roots  deep  at  the  earth's  very  centre. 

My  first  work,  upon  landing  at  Beyrout,  was  to  forward  by  mail,  to 
each  of  several  hundreds  of  old  correspondents,  a  specimen  of  the 
"  productions  of  the  land"  in  the  form  of  an  Olive  Leaf.  I  learned  that 
it  was  gratifying  to  them,  both  as  a  veritable  token  from  the  Holy  Land 
and  an  appropriate  tessera  of  brotherly  remembrance.  Upon  my 


76  THE    OLIVE-LEAF. 

return  home  in  July,  I  went  heavily  laden  with  "  the  searching*. 
of  the  land,"  even  more  than  the  twelve  spies  who  "  came  unto  the 
brook  Eshcol,  and  cut  down  from  thence  a  branch,  with  one  cluster 
of  grapes,  and  bare  it  between  two  upon  a  staff,  and  brought  of  the 
pomegranates  and  the  figs. "  (Num.  xiii.  23.)  These  and  hundreds 
of  other  specimens  I  bore  to  my  friends. 

Each  of  the  olive  leaves  sent  from  Beyrout  was  accompanied  by  a 
copy  of  the  following  lines : 

THE  OLIVE-LEAF.  * 

Lines  composed  to  accompany  olive-leaves  plucked  from  the  groves 
of  Beyrout,  in  the  Holy  Land,  March  6th,  1868,  by  Brother  Morris. 

And  the  Dove  came  in  to  him  in  the  evening ;  and  lo,  in  her  mouth 
was  the  Olive-leaf  pluckt  off;  so  Noah  knew  that  the  waters  were 
•bated  from  the  Earth.  Gen.  viii  11. 

Like  wandering  Dove,  whose  restless  feet 

Could  find  no  solid  landing-place, 

I  pluck  this  Olive-Leaf  to  grace 
A  memory  very  pure  and  sweet. 

This  was  the  ancient  type  of  peace; 
The  wrathful  flood  was  overpast: 
The  gladsome  sun  beamed  forth  at  last ; 

The  Ark  on  storm-tossed  ways  did  cease. 

Then  from  the  Olive-Bough,  the  Bird 
Pluckt  this  green  leaf  with  mystic  care, 
And  to  the  Patriarch's  fingers  bare 

The  missive  with  its  high  accord. 

Dear  Friend,  to  you  this  Olive-spray 

I  send,  the  Messenger  of  love  ; 

It  speaks  a  sentiment  above 
All  other  language  to  convey. 

The  Olive,— glory  of  this  land  : 
Our  Ancient  Craft  from  this  expressed 
The  Oil  of  Joy,  that  shone,  and  blessed, 

In  hours  of  rest,  the  laboring  Band. 

The  deadliest  hands,  upraised  in  hate, 
Before  this  gentle  missive  drop; 
I  he  direst  discord  then  must  stop  ;— 
Hive  speaks,  the  floods  abate. 


STARTING   DOWN  TO  TYRE.  71 

All  this  and  more  I  fain  would  teach 
From  this  bright  ancient  verdant  text ; 
Take  it  with  all  the  words  ann'exed ; — 

Be  yours  the  sermon  that  they  preach  ! 

The  "words  annexed,"  in  the  last  stanza,  were  quotations  from 
Deut.  viik  8 ;  1  K.  v.  11 ;  Ps.  lii.  8  ;  cxxviii.  3,  etc.  A  space  was  left 
in  the  printed  copy  to  fasten  the  olive  leaf  upon,  that  so  it  might  be 
framed  and  preserved. 

At  the  conclusion  of  the  last  chapter  I  gave  an  itinerary  of  my 
entire  travels  while  in  Syria,  Palestine,  and  Egypt.  In  the  making 
up  of  this  volume,  however,  I  follow  the  natural  order  of  a  Masonic 
narrative  thus : 

DIVISION  FIRST.— Tyre,  the  royal  seat  of  King  Hiram. 

DIVISION  SECOND. — Gebal,  the  home  and  school  of  Hiram  the 
Architect, 

DIVISION  THIRD. — Lebanon,  the  source  of  the  cedars. 

DIVISION  FOURTH. — The  Bay  of  the  Rafts  where  the  cedars  wertj 
floated. 

DIVISION  FIFTH. — Joppa,  the  port  of  trans-shipment. 

DIVISION  SIXTH. — The  clay-grounds,  the  site  of  Hiram's  furnaces 
and  foundries. 

DIVISION  SEVENTH. — Jerusalem,  the  site  of  the  Temple.  *  *  * 
Tyre  and  its  surroundings  therefore  come  foremost. 

On  the  morning  of  April  13th,  at  7  o'clock,  I  started  on  horseback 
with  an  Arab  servant,  one  Hassan  Mardby,  riding  a  second  horse  and 
carrying  my  impedimenta  of  blankets,  overcoats,  books,  provisions, 
working  tools,  etc.,  etc.,  to  visit  the  city  of  Tyre,  now  called  Soor  (or 
Tsoor).  Having  been  nearly  six  weeks  in  the  country,  during  which 
I  had  made  four  excursions,  I  felt  posted  upon  the  best  method  of 
travel,  and  the  quantity  of  baggage,  etc.,  essential  to  it.  My  plan, 
which  I  recommend  to  all  travellers  who  do  not  fancy  making  them- 
selves slaves  to  dragomans,  is  to  hire  two  horses  and  their  owner  for 
a  certain  number  of  days  (in  this  case,  six) ;  he  to  subsist  himself  and 
his  horses  and  be  his  own  quartermaster.  The  stipulated  price  with 
Hassan  was  twelve  francs  a  day  for  the  whole,  equal  at  the  then 
rates  of  gold  to  $3.25  per  day.  Besides  this,  my  own  board  and  lodg- 
ing cost  me  about  $2.00  per  day.  So,  for  $5.00  per  day,  or  there- 
abouts, I  go  as  an  independent  traveller,  stopping  when  I  please  and 
where  I  please,  and  as  long  as  I  please,  with  none  to  molest  me  or 


fg  HARD   ROADS. 

make  me  afraid.    Hassan  stipulates  to  collect  specimens  for  me,  do 
my  interpreting,  and  serve  me  in  every  way  that  he  is  ordered. 

The  road  from  Beyrout  to  Sidon  runs  for  five  miles  over  singular 
red  sand-hills,  the  only  deposits  of  the  sort  on  the  coast.  It  is  sug 
gested  by  some  that  this  sand  is  blown  into  the  sea,  near  the  mouth 
of  the  Nile,  in  Egypt,  brought  by  the  prevailing  currents  to  this 
ghore,  where  the  wind  seizes  it  when  dry,  and  drifts  it  westward  like 
snow,  threatening  some  day  to  submerge  the  whole  city  of  Beyrout. 
I  took  considerable  quantities  of  this  desert-sand,  the  only  link  now 
connecting  Egypt  and  Phoenicia,  once  so  nearly  related  in  religion, 
gymbology,  and  all  the  details  of  ancient  Freemasonry. 

This  road  over  the  sand-hills  was  described  six  centuries  ago,  as  a 
good,  deep  road,  and  never  was  one  better  named.  For  miles  the 
horses  stepped  fetlock  deep  in  the  sand. 

I  had  already  inaugurated  the  practice  of  naming  the  best-marked 
hays  on  this  coast  after  Masonic  emblems,  and  dedicating  them  to 
American  lodges.  There  is  one  such  at  the  distance  of  five  hours 
(about  fifteen  miles)  from  Beyrout,  shaped  much  like  a  Trowel. 
This,  therefore,  I  dubbed  The  Bay  of  the  Trowel,  and  dedicated  to 
the  genial  and  generous  brethren  of  Manchester,  Iowa;  Indianapolis, 
Indiana ;  and  La  Grange,  Kentucky,  between  whom  there  runs  a 
line  of  Masonic  similarity,  closer  than  blood-relationship.  This  bay 
will  be  identified  by  travellers  by  the  circumstance  that,  just  south  of 
it,  as  you  rise  the  hill  on  the  old  Roman  road,  there  is  an  ancient  watch- 
tower  of  squared  stone,  by  some  attributed  to  Queen  Helena,  but 
probably  Phoenician  in  its  make.  Here  a  great  battle  was  fought,  B.C. 
218,  between  the  Syrians  under  Antiochus  the  Great,  and  the  Egyptians 
under  Ptolemy.  Coins  of  these  two  kings  will  be  found  figured  in 
thU  book.  The  latter  was  defeated  with  fearful  slaughter.  The  Bay 
of  the  Trowel  is  a  charming  little  nook  of  water,  its  shores  abound- 
ing in  shells  and  sponges,  and  in  every  way  worthy  its  dedication. 

Not  far  from  it  is  a  Moslem  tomb,  called  Neby  Younas,  the  tomb 
of  Jonah ;  and  here,  in  a  little  bay  close  in  front  of  the  tomb,  is  the 
traditional  disgorging  place  of  the  disobedient  prophet,  who  went 
southwest  when  ordered  to  go  northeast.  Close  by  the  tomb  is  a 
Khan,  or  tavern,  more  strictly  a  caf6,  or  coffee-house,  where  several 
times  in  passing  I  spent  a  quiet  hour,  sipping  the  native  coffee, 
and  writing  up  my  notes.  Shall  I  record  the  memorandums  made  of 
"  what  I  resolved  to  do  every  day  while  in  this  country  ?  "  For  four 
months,  I  acted  upon  the  plan  following,  and  fortes  fortuna  adjuvat, 


JONAH'S  TAVERN.  79 

as  Pliny  Senior  said,  just  before  he  was  gobbled  up  by  Mount  Ve- 
suvius : 

"A  person  visiting  any  strange  country  should  possess  practised 
powers  of  observation,  or  his  travels  can  present  no  useful  results. 
The  ordinary  grade  of  tourists'  observations  upon  Holy  Land  is 
scarcely  above  an  infant's.  He  should  be  skilled  in  trees,  plants, 
rocks,  customs,  costumes,  peoples ;  but  those  who  have  written  upon 
this  country  seem  to  have  known  nothing  of  such  things  when  they 
landed,  and  but  little  more  when  they  sailed  away.  What  drivel 
makes  up  their  books !  I  have  hundreds  of  them  in  my  library, 
and  it  is  enough  to  give  one  the  dyspepsia  to  look  through  them. 
For  my  part,  I  am  resolved  to-day,  and  for  my  coming  four  months, 
to  bring  forty  years  of  reading,  study,  and  travel  to  bear  on  the 
scenes  before  me.  I  will  examine  the  earth  and  rocks,  and  see  what 
they  are  made  of.  I  will  consider  this  ancient  country  as  a  naturalist's 
museum,  and  get  my  money's  worth  out  of  it.  As  a  French  savant 
Baid,  when  congratulated  upon  his  vast  discoveries,  I  will  simply  look 
and  see  things  as  they  are  made,  and  tell  the  story  as  it  is." 

But  this  Neby  Younas  Khan  (literally  Jonah  House)  is  vox 
prceterea  nihil,  only  a  sound.  It  is  a  local  liquoring  place.  All  it 
has  is  coffee  and  smoke,  the  coffee  coming  to  you  in  Turkish  cups, 
Liliputian  indeed,  the  smoke  through  the  great  water-pipe  styled 
narghileh  (nargeely),  and  the  tomb  itself  recalls  the  old  Barnum 
story  of  Captain  Cook's  war-club.  Finding  that  every  other  museum 
had  the  club  that  killed  Captain  Cooke,  Barnum  procured  it  also ! 
For  there  are  already  five  tombs  where  Jonah  is  buried,  besides  this 
one,  viz. :  at  Sephoris,  Hebron,  Tyre,  Alexandrette,  and  the  one  near 
Babylon,  described  by  Layard.  Were  I  opening  a  coffee-house,  near 
the  Dead  Sea,  for  instance,  I  should  build  a  Jonah's  tomb  too.  It 
would  pay.  I  forgot,  after  all,  to  mention  Jonah's  tomb  at  Raphiah, 
near  Egypt,  where  the  Mohammedans  report  a  visit  from  this  cele- 
brated traveller. 

At  Neby  Younas  I  saw  the  first  truly  sick  person  I  had  come  in 
contact  with  in  the  Holy  Land.  His  broken  cough,  sunken  eye, 
hollow  cheek,  fetid  breath,  and  despairing  face,  were  so  many  indica- 
tions of  rapid  approach  to  the  grave,  that  recalled  a  thousand  sad 
memories  of  dying  friends.  These  people  have  a  perfect  passion  for 
medicine,  and  he  insisted  on  having  some  of  me.  I  gave  him  half 
of  the  ginger-root  I  always  carry  in  my  pocket 

The  hard,  smooth  beach  around  Jonah's  Bay  by  Neby  Younas 
tempts  me  for  the  first  time  to-day  into  a  gallop.  How  invigorating 


ROMAN   STANDARDS. 


ANCIENT   LAMP. 


ANCIENT   POTS   AND  JARS. 


METHOD   OF   SHROUDING    A   CORPSE. 


A   NATIVE   itEPAETEE.  81 

the  Western  breeze,  the  solemn  swash  of  the  wave,  the  shriek  of  the- 
gull,  the  flight  of  my  sinewy  horse.  I  am  twenty  years  younger 
again.  But  no,  my  hat  blows  off.  In  dismounting  to  get  it  I  turn 
my  ankle.  In  remounting  I  break  my  pocket-comb,  and  so  the  rest 
of  the  day's  journey  is  done  in  a  slow  walk. 

As  I  sat  imbibing  the  coffee  of  Jonah's  Tavern  in  a  steady  draught,, 
for  nothing  less  than  the  Fellow-Craft's  number  will  suffice  a 
drinker  from  these  cups  in  an  Oriental  cafe,,  I  quietly  asked  the  land- 
lord :  "  Khaujee,  where  along  this  coast  did  the  great  fish  discharge 
the  prophet  Jonah  ?"  The  Khanjee  had  learned  this  part  of  his- 
lesson  well.  His  fishy  eyes  brightened  up.  He  took  his  hands,, 
figuratively  speaking,  out  of  his  pockets,  scratched  himself,  and  then 
pointing  the  dirtiest  finger  in  the  direction  of  a  little  bay  a  hundred 
yards  in  the  southwest,  answered,  "  Howadji,  yonder  is  the  spot." 

It  was  a  suitable  place,  and  showed  a  good  taste  of  selection  either 
in  the  whale  or  the  Khanjee.  So,  after  looking  pleasingly  toward* 
it,  and  emptying  a  few  more  cups.  I  abandoned  the  examination  in 
chief  and  began  the  cross-examination : 

"  But,  Khanjee,  how  do  you  know  that  is  the  place  ? 

Here  was  a  puzzler.  The  query  had  never  before  been  propounded 
the  stupid  fellow.  Dropping  his  head  and  returning  his  hands,, 
figuratively  speaking,  into  his  pockets,  he  sat  for  a  moment  a  monu- 
ment of  inanity.  Then,  with  a  spirit  of  repartee  that  I  had  not 
supposed  was  in  him,  he  raised  his  head,  and  answered : 

"But,  Howadji,  if  that  is  not  the  place,  where  is  the  place?" 
And  so  the  subject  dropped. 

Continuing  my  journey,  sometimes  along  the  hard  beach  of  this- 
sea  without  tides,  sometimes  in  the  deep  sands  a  little  ways  back,, 
sometimes  across  the  rocky  points  of  the  hills,  I  came,  about  4  P.M., 
in  sight  of  the  crenulated  battlements  of  the  Gothic  chateau  of  St.  Lois^ 
and  then  of  the  city  of  Sidon  itself,  surrounded  on  the  land-side  by 
groves  of  fruit-trees.  Sidon  abounded,  of  old,  in  citrons,  oranges,  pome- 
granates, saffron,  figs,  almonds,  sugar-cane,  coriander,  and  other  rare 
objects  of  desire.  It  was  called  of  the  Phoenicians  Sidon,  in  regard- 
to  the  abundance  of  fish.  The  neroli,  or  oil  distilled  from  orange 
blossoms,  made  so  abundantly  here,  is  so  far  superior  to  that 
extracted  from  orange-peel,  that  thousands  of  trees  are  stripped  of 
blossoms  every  season,  which  never  go  to  maturity  of  fruit,  to  supply 
the  wants  of  the  perfume-makers. 

The  orange  groves  surrounding  this  ancient  city  are  so  charming 

6 


yt  THK   FRUITS  OF  SIDOtf. 

u  to  make  the  poor  old  place  look  by  contrast  worse  than  it  should. 
The  fruit  is  abundant,  large,  and  delicious.  For  four  months  they 
hang  on  the  trees  ripening,  and  the  germ,  the  bud,  the  blossom,  the 
green  fruit  and  the  ripe  fruit  cluster,  side  by  side,  as  I  have  seen  an 
old  New-England  family  on  Thanksgiving-day  grouped  together  in 
the  third  and  fourth  generation ;  or,  more  graphically,  as  I  have 
Been  in  an  old  and  lively  lodge  of  Masons,  working  on  the  First 
Degree,  the  bud,  the  flower,  and  the  ripened  fruit  in  the  three 
classes  of  Craftsmen  there  assembled.  An  old  author,  Sandys, 
translates  from  the  Odyssey  (ii.  1)  an  appropriate  passage,  which  I 
transcribe  as  follows : 

These  at  no  time  do  their  rare  fruits  forego, 
Still,  breathing  Zephyrus  maketh  some  to  grow, 
Others  to  ripen ;  growing  fruits  supply 
The  gathered,  and  succeed  so  orderly. 

Here,  too,  "  the  acacia  waves  her  golden  hair,"  large  trees,  ten  w 
twelve  inches  in  diameter,  lining  the  avenues  of  the  city  on  the  east 
In  a  subsequent  chapter  I  will  describe  this  tree,  famous  in 
Masonic  uses. 

I  reached  Sidon  about  4  P.M.,  and  spent  the  night,  by  invitation, 
with  Rev.  Wm.  M.  Eddy,  one  of  the  American  missionaries  stationed 
here.  The  father  of  this  hospitable  gentleman  was  made  a  Mason. 
in  company  with  Pliny  Fisk,  about  the  year  1824,  preparatory  to 
embarking  for  the  Holy  Land  as  a  missionary.  They  united  with 
our  ancient  Order  under  the  hope  that  through  its  cosmopolitan 
character  and  influence  their  holy  work  might  be  expedited.  The 
present  Mr.  Eddy  is  not  a  Mason,  although  possessing  the  general 
spirit  of  one.  He  made  my  stay  at  his  house,  both  going  and  return- 
ing, home-like  and  sweet. 

In  the  bazaar  may  be  seen  oranges  by  the  cargo,  piled  in  huge 
heaps,  figs,  grapes,  olives,  pomegranates,  dates,  almonds,  raisins, 
peaches,  apricots,  limes,  lemons,  plums,  quinces,  the  most  luxuriant 
bananas,  and  other  fruits  in  variety  and  abundance. 

On  returning  to  Beyrout-some  days  afterwards,  I  was  conducted 
by  a  smart  little  son  of  Mr.  Eddy,  since  sent  to  America  to  be 
sdncated,  to  the  establishment  of  a  potter,  outside  the  gate.  A  view 
jf  this  ancient  art,  esteemed  honorable  in  1  Chron.  iv.  23,  and  made 
by  Jeremiah  (xviii.)  and  other  Bible  writers  a  subject  of  imagery, 
cleared  up  to  my  mind  a  number  of  Scriptural  allusions.  The  work- 


THE   HARD   FORTUNES   OF   SIDON. 

men,  however,  were  an  unsightly  set ;  three  Arabs  with  only  four  good 
•eyes  among  them.  I  observed  here  that  every  man  you  meet  is  wear- 
ing the  dress  in  which  "  he  lieth  down  at  night  " — a  fact  that  explains 
various  things,  entomological  and  otherwise,  that  at  first  glance  puz- 
zles you  in  the  East.  As  I  sat  there  watching  the  chief  potter,  I 
read  Romans  ix.  21 :  "  Hath  not  the  potter  power  over  the  clay,  of  the 
same  lump  to  make  one  vessel  unto  honor  and  another  unto  dishonor  ?" 
•and  my  answer  was  in  the  affirmative. 

There  is  no  lodge  of  Masons  at  Sidon,  but  quite  a  number  of  the 
craft  live  here,  whom  I  met  the  following  June  at  Beyrout.    It  is 
41  city  well  adapted  for  a  lodge,  high  and  ample  chambers  being  found 
in  abundance,  and  a  resident  population  that  would  afford  an  abun- 
dance of  good  "  timbers  "  (materials)  for  Masonic  work.    I  hope  to 
iearn  that  a  lodge  ere  long  will  be  established  here.    In  the  hope  of 
•such  a  desirable  consummation,  I  locate  here  the  following  names  of 
worthy  and  eminent  Masons:  0.  H.  Main,  G.  B.  Van  Saun,  Henry; 
Hitt,    George    W.   Chaytor,    A.   K.   Whitney,   Jesse    B.    Anthony 
Washington    Galland,    B.    P.  Simmons,    Luke  E.  Barber,    Elwoo( 
Evans. 

Spending  a  Sabbath-day  here  in  the  following  June,  I  had  some 
genial  hours  in  that  Christian  family,  remembering  the  days  of  old, 
meditating  ou  all  his  works,  musing  on  the  work  of  God's  hands, 
(Ps.  cxliii.  5),  and  heard  a  very  lovely  song  of  one  that  hath  a 
pleasant  voice  and  can  play  well  on  an  instrument  (Ez.  xxxiii.  32). 

Sidon  has  been  four  times  taken,  plundered,  and  dismantled.  On 
•one  occasion  (most  memorable)  it  was  absolutely  reduced  to  ashes 
and  cinders,  and  the  privilege  of  sifting  out  the  debris  for  the  precious 
metals  found  in  them  was  sold  to  an  enterprising  pedlar  for  a  con- 
siderable sum.  One  of  these  fearful  conflagrations  of  Sidon  may  be 
•compared  in  several  points  with  that  unparalleled  fire  which  reduced 
Ohicago,  Oct.  8-11, 1871,  to  dust  and  ashes,  turned  sandstone  into  sand 
and  limestone  into  gas,  and  melting  the  most  obdurate  metals  as 
wax.  Alas,  when  I  made  notes  of  Sidon,  I  little  thought  that  the 
city  which  Miss  Bremer  had  styled  in  her  admiration  "  the  home  of 
Loki  and  Thor,  the  supernatural  powers,"  could  become  in  any  way 
a  parallel  in  desolation.  At  8  o'clock,  Tuesday  morning,  April  14. 
I  left  Sidon  for  Tyre.  In  three  hours  I  arrived  at  Sarepta,  named  in 
'I  Kings  viii.,  and  believed  to  be  the  city  alluded  to  in  Matthew  xv., 
and  Mark  vii.,  where  Jesus  cast  out  a  demon  from  the  widow's  child. 
This  is  the  first  ground  sacred  to  Jesus  upon  which  I  had  trodden,  and 


v.;  A   BEDOUIN   AND   HIS   HOKSE. 

I  spent  several  hours  at  Sarepta,  collecting  specimens,  and  exploring 
the  ruins.  In  my  chapter  on  the  Itinerary  of  Jesus  I  will  refer  to  it 
again.  There  is  not  a  house  now  standing  at  Sarepta,  where  was 
onoe  a  large  city.  I  cut  the  Square  and  Compass  with  my  chisel 
upon  a  huge  ashlar  belonging  to  some  ancient  temple,  in  the  shadow 
of  a  tamarisk -tree,  and  loaded  my  servant  with  a  hundred  weight  of 
marble  and  granite  fragments,  shells,  bits  of  glass,  etc.,  representing 
this  once  famed  city. 

I  took  occasion  while  here  to  examine  the  spear  of  an  Arab  sheikh, 
one  of  the  Bedouin  persuasion,  who  stopped  to  drink  water  at  Ain 
Kanterah.  It  was  fourteen  feet  long,  ornamented  near  the  top  with 
two  large  black  tufts  feathered.  It  was  armed  with  a  sharp  iron 
ferule  at  the  lower  end,  so  as  to  enable  its  holder  to  strike  it  into  the 
ground  at  an  easy  blow.  This  is  truly  a  formidable  weapon,  but  its 
owner  handled  it  as  gracefully  as  a  Charleston  dandy  handles  his 
cane.  The  Bedouin  himself  was  of  low  stature,  raw-boned,  tawny, 
having  a  feminine  voice,  and  a  swift  and  noiseless  pace,  like  one  of 
our  moccasin-shod  Indians  of  the  West. 

His  horse  was  a  genuine  specimen  of  the  Arab  stock.  He  was 
larger  than  ordinary  American  horses,  had  an  eye  full  of  fire  and 
intelligence,  head  well  set  on,  forehead  rather  straight,  fine  at  the 
withers,  quarters  well  turned,  body  round  and  good,  legs  clean,  pas- 
terns long ;  a  serviceable-looking  animal.  The  following  conversation 
gives  a  good  idea  of  the  rider : 

Howadji.  Where  would  you  rather  live  ? 
Bedouin.  In  the  desert. 
Hmoadji.  Why  in  the  desert  ? 

Bedouin.  Because  I  am  the  son  of  the  desert,  and  not  the  son  of 
the  city. 

He  said  the  race  of  horses  he  was  riding  had  been  four  hundred 
years  in  his  family,  and  that  no  money  could  buy  this  one.  He  was 
broken  to  travel  only  at  the  walk  and  gallop,  the  unnatural  and 
ungraceful  movement  of  a  trot  being  deemed  unworthy  of  an  Arab 
courser. 

The  life  of  this  Arab  is  one  of  danger  and  distress  from  his  youth. 
He  wears  upon  his  face  the  features  of  his  ancestors,  "  wild  men," 
who  in  the  days  of  Moses,  and  of  Mohammed,  twenty-one  hundred 
years  later,  dwelt  in  tents  and  conducted  their  flocks  to  the  same 
springs  and  pastures  as  their  fathers  of  the  earliest  times. 

At  Sarepta  I  oaught  a  view  of  Jebel,  old  Jebel-es-Sheikh,  Mount 


HEKMOIf,   MOUNT   OF   DEWS.  85 

Hermon,  fifty  miles  in  the  southeast.  His  snowy  cap  gives  him 
prominence  in  the  clear  blue  sky.  The  mountain  seems  from  this 
point  like  a  pale  blue  snow-capped  peak  peering  over  the  intervening 
ranges  of  Lebanon.  How  often  in  Masonic  lectures  have  I  quoted 
the  passage  from  David : 

"  Like  the  dew  of  Hermon  and  like  the  dew  that  descended  upon 
the  mountains  of  Zion ;  for  there  the  Lord  commanded  the  blessing, 
even  life  forevermore." 

How  often  have  I  sung  the  paraphrase  of  the  good  Giles  F.  Yates, 
whom  I  knew  so  well  in  1855-7 : 

"  Like  Hermon's  dew,  so  richly  shed 
On  Zion's  sacred  hills!" 

In  a  future  chapter  I  will  give  a  full  description  of  this  mountain, 
Freemasonry's  grandest  type  of  brotherly  love.  But  here  I  remark 
that  the  amount  of  moisture  the  earth  receives  from  this  great  water- 
cooler  and  atmospheric  regulator  must  be  immense,  when  we  con- 
sider the  acknowledged  fact  that  a  single  inch  of  water  spread  level 
over  one  acre  of  ground  weighs  one  hundred  tons ! 

To  this  dewy  thought  the  poet  alludes : 

^  When  the  West 
Opens  his  golden  bowers  of  rest, 
And  a  moist  radiance  from  the  skies 
Shoots  trembling  down. 

I  am  loth  to  lay  aside  the  theme.  Hermon  is  the  mountain  that 
passeth  into  the  clouds  and  joins  to  the  upper  air ;  one  of  "  the  eter- 
nal hills "  raised  to  an  elevation  that  cools,  condenses,  and  returns 
the  moisture  ascending  from  the  parched  earth,  sending  it  back  in 
grateful  dews,  rains,  and  springs. 

Sarepta,  now  without  a  winepress,  a  grapevine,  or  a  winedrinker, 
was  once  celebrated  for  the  quantity  and  quality  of  its  wine.  But  a 
man  hunting  his  morning  dram  in  1868  would  be  as  badly  off  as  at 
Grinnell,  Iowa,  where  the  "  drummers  "  are  said  to  carry  full  flasks 
with  them,  or  do  worse. 

Along  this  dreary  waste,  where  once  there  rung 
The  festal  lay  which  smiling  virgins  sung ; 
Where  rapture  echoed  from  the  warbling  lute, 
And  the  gay  dance  resounded — all  is  mute. 

Macaulay. 

My  noontide  at  Sarepta  did  not  pass  without  an  appeal  to  th« 


fetf  THE  MUSE  AT  SAKEPTA. 

muse.  Amidst  these  undecipherable  ruins,  the  very  debris  of  rumsy 
the  sight  obstructed  by  deep  holes  dug  by  the  laborers  to  get  mate- 
rials for  the  buildings  at  Beyrout,  the  gushing  water  of  Ain  Kanterah 
flowing  at  my  feet,  the  shady  tamarisks  embowering  me,  the  romantic 
mountains  behind  and  the  sea  before  me ;  withal,  the  affecting  story 
of  Jeaus  on  the  open  page  on  my  knee,  it  was  easy  to  pen  the,  follow- 
ing 

LINES  AT  SAREPTA,  APRIL  14, 1868. 

Led  by  a  hand  invisible, 

I  come  at  last  to  view  the  place 
Where  Jesus  broke  the  power  of  hell, 

And  gave  the  tortured  child  release. 

Aud  can  it  be  my  wearied  feet 
Press  the  same  earth  that  Jesus  trod  ? 

Oh,  happy  hour,  oh,  bliss  complete, 
Oh,  promises  fulfilled  of  God ! 

These  mountains  looked  on  Christ  that  day ; 

This  fountain  murmured  in  His  ear; 
The  sky  serene,  the  glassy  bay, 

The  charming  flowers— all,  all  were  here. 

How  looked  the  Saviour  ?  oh,  to  see 

His  face  divine !    Was  it  in  grief 
At  human  pain,  and  misery, 

And  want,  and  sin,  and  unbelief? 

Beneath  this  tamarisk-tree  I  muse ; 

Grant  me  to  drink  the  spirit  in 
Of  that  great  hour,  nor  let  me  lose 

One  feature  of  the  wondrous  scene : 

The  mother  clamorous  with  her  plea, 

The  apostle's  cold,  impatient  word, 
Faith's  trial  and  sure  victory, 

And  oh,  the  utterance  of  the  Lord ! 

Cease,  murmuring  fountain,  cease  thy  flow, 
And  let  His  utterance  reach  my  soul  • 

"Great  is  thy  faith,  0  woman,  go! 
Already  is  the  child  made  whole ! n 

The  chain  of  evil  power  released, 

The  demon's  fetters  broke  at  last; 
The  very  crumbs  of  Jesus'  feast 

Better  than  all  the  world's  repast 


BETWEEN   SAEEPTA   AND   TYRE.  87 

No  longer  to  restrain  my  tears, 

Such  gratitude  these  drops  recount : 

'Tis  surely  worth  my  fifty  years, 
Tliis  noontide  at  Sarepta's  fount ! 

Sing,  murmuring  waters,  lulling  streams; 

Roar,  foamy  breakers,  on  the  shore; 
Broken  Sarepta's  fleeting  dreams, 

The  vision  will  return  no  more. 

Far  o'er  the  western  sea  my  heart 
Wanders  from  lone  Sarepta's  shrine ; 

I  rise,  and  on  my  way  depart, 
Never  to  view  these  scenes  again. 

But  /  shall  meet  Him  !  yes,  I  know, 

My  inmost  being  this  assures, 
"Where  founts  celestial  smoothly  flow, 

And  perfect  blessedness  allures. 

Onward  and  onward  moments  fly, 
My  sands  of  life  make  haste  to  run; 

Lord,  grant  me  favor  ere  I  die, 

To  leave  no  appointed  task  undone! 

Leaving  the  sight  of  that  mountain,  along  by  whose  base  passed 
the  man,  4,000  years  ago,  in  whom  the  whole  Church  was  contained, 
and  the  sweet  spring  that  to  the  latest  hour  of  my  life  will  be  asso- 
ciated with  romantic  memories,  I  passed  on  southwards  over  Phoe- 
nicia, a  narrow  strip  of  plain  rarely  extending  more  than  a  mile  or 
two  in  width  from  the  shore,  backed  by  ranges  of  mountains,  piled 
tier  upon  tier  to  the  snow-covered  crests  of  Lebanon ;  remembering 
that  between  Sidon  and  Tyre,  where  there  is  now  not  only  no  city 
nor  village,  but  not  even  a  house,  there  were  once  sixteen  pros- 
perous towns!  As  the  distance  is  a  scant  twenty-five  miles,  the 
suburbs  of  these  contiguous  towns  must  have  been  very  much 
restricted,  the  wall  of  one  city  almost  meeting  that  of  the  next. 

The  sight  of  fishermen  standing  naked  in  the  hot  sunshine, 
waiting  to  cast  their  hand-nets  at  the  approach  of  schools  of  fish, 
interested  me  greatly.  A  basket  of  the  Mediterranean  fish  had  beeo 
shown  me  at  Khan  Younas.  "When  I  saw  what  severe  labor  the 
poor  fellows  undergo,  I  sung  my  favorite  lines : 

God  bless  the  laboring  man,  I  pray ; 
Make  sure  his  wages  every  day ; 


ARRIVAL  AT  TTRB. 

Afield,  afloat, 
Afloat,  afield, 
Make  honest  work  its  wages  yield. 

I  think  there  is  always  a  group  of  gazelles  feeding  in  the  meadow- 
lands  a  few  miles  north  of  Tyre— meadows  so  rich  that  one  of  the  old 
pilgrims  declared  that  those  bad  roads  were  fully  recompensed  to 
him  by  the  fragrant  savors  of  rosemary,  bay,  hyssop,  marjorum,  and 
other  perfumed  plants.  Altogether,  I  passed  here  three  times,  and 
always  found  gazelles.  They  are  the  Gazella  Arabica,  two  feet  high 
at  the  shoulder.  The  Scriptural  names  are  Ariel,  Dorcas,  Tabitha, 
etc.  Their  airy  and  graceful  forms  are  very  attractive.  The  first 
group  of  them  that  I  saw  stood  motionless,  sharply  defined  against 
the  background  of  the  sky  and  hills.  After  a  moment  they  threw 
their  heads  up,  and  bounded  away  like  the  flight  of  birds. 

A  few  miles  north  of  Tyre  I  crossed  the  "  willful  headlong  river," 
called  now  Nahr-el-Kasimiyeh  (but  you  will  not  pronounce  it  as  the 
Arabs  do  in  fifty  times  trying!  I  got  a  sore  throat  and  wasted  two 
miles  trying  to  catch  it  from  Hassan.)  The  words  mean,  "the 
Dividing  River."  It  is,  no  doubt,  the  old  Leontes,  and  a  beautiful 
stream  it  is,  closely  resembling  the  Jordan,  as  I  afterwards  saw,  and 
about  thirty  feet  wide.  The  bridge  is  a  single  arch,  very  neat  and 
strong.  The  current  is  so  swift  that,  seeing  a  dead  duck  floating 
under  the  bridge,  I  ran  to  the  other  side,  but  the  duck  had  got  past 
me  on  its  way  to  the  sea. 

The  heavy  load  I  had  imposed  upon  Hassan  necessitated  the  poor 
fellow's  walking  all  the  way  from  Sarepta  to  Tyre,  some  eighteen 
miles'  distance.  I  named  a  charming  little  bay,  distant  about  six 
miles  south  of  Sidon,  the  Bay  of  the  Square,  from  its  peculiar  form, 
and  dedicated  it  to  the  Freemasons  of  Wheeling,  Western  Virginia; 
Omaha,  Nebraska ;  and  Waterloo,  Iowa.  This  bay  may  be  known 
from  an  ancient  watch-tower  standing  directly  on  the  edge  of  the 
bay  at  its  southwestern  extremity. 

Arrived  at  Tyre -about  six  o'clock.  Found  accommodations  in  the 
house  of  a  native  family,  who  were  extremely  attentive  to  my  wants, 
for  a  moderate  price.  In  my  visit  to  Damascus,  two  weeks  before,  I 
had  procured  from  the  Governor-General,  Mohammed  Raschid,  a  docu- 
ment directed  to  all  governors  of  towns  and  villages  throughout  Syria, 
commanding  them  to  see  that  I  was  furnished  with  suitable  accommo- 
dations for  myself  and  servants,  together  with  guards  in  going  from 
place  to  place,  etc..  and  all  at  reasonable  prices.  This  document, 


A    BTTYURULDI.  89 

called  a  Buyuruldi,  which  was  secured  strictly  through  Masonic 
influence,  was  of  service  to  me  in  every  place  I  visited.  I  have  also  a 
Firman  from  the  Sultan  himself,  at  Constantinople,  Abdul  Aziz,  sent 
me  through  the  kind  influence  of  Brother  John  P.  Brown,  Secretary 
of  the  American  Embassy  there.  .  The  two  together  never  failed  to 
secure  for  me  all  the  attentions  I  needed,,  for  a  reasonable  considera- 
tion. 

The  following  is  a  translation  of  the  Firman  referred*  to.  It  is 
written  upon  a  thick  and  substantial  sheet  of  paper,  about  twenty- 
four  by  thirty  inches  in  dimensions,  at  the  top  of  which  is  the  name 
of  the  Sultan,  Abd-ul-Aziz,  in  a  peculiarly  complicated  anagram, 
called  a  Toogra : 

"  Imperial  Travelling  Firman  of  Sultan  Abdul  Aziz  Khan,  granted 
in  favor  of  Eobert  Morris,  addressed  to  H.  E.  Mohammed  Kaschid, 
Pasha,  Governor-General  of  the  Vilayet  of  Syria. 

"  To  my  Minister  and  very  glorious  Councillor,  the  model  of  the 
world  ;  the  regulator  of  the  regulations  of  the  universe  ;  he  who  di- 
rects the  public  interests  with  rare  wisdom,  and  settles  all  important 
affairs  with  singular  judgment;  he  who  strengthens  the  edifice  of 
the  Empire  and  secures  its  prosperity;  who  invigorates  the  columns 
of  felicity  and  magnificence ;  in  fine,  who  is  the  especial  recipient  of 
the  power  and  favor  of  the  Most  High  Sovereign  of  the  universe ; 
the  Governor-General  of  the  Vilayet  of  Syria;  wearer  of  the  First 
Class  of  the  Decoration  of  the  Mejidiah,  Mohammed  Easchid,  Pasha 
and  Vizier ;  may  the  Most  High  prolong  his  grandeur! 

"  When  the  present  sublime  Imperial  Document  reaches  you,  know 
that  the  American  Legation  at  the  Capital  of  my  Empire,  has  re- 
ported that  an  American  citizen,  Eobert  Morris,  a  traveller,  is  desirous 
of  travelling  from  Constantinople  to  Syria,  via  Beyrout,  Sham  Shereef 
(Damascus),  Khuds  Shereef  (Jerusalem),  Yaffa  (Joppa),  and  their 
vicinity,  and  asks  that  while  on  his  way,  or  residing  in  any  place,  he 
be  protected  and  aided.  In  ea-ih  point  of  view,  I  have  therefore  is- 
sued the  present  Noble  Order.  You,  therefore,  the  Governor-Gen- 
eral before  mentioned,  will  see  that  the  aforesaid  traveller,  wherever 
he  may  go  or  desire  to  stay  on  his  journey,  be  treated  with  re- 
spect and  regard;  that  he  be  provided  with  horses,  according  to  the 
regulations,  and  receive  guards  to  enable  him  to  pass  through  all 
dangerous  places.  Be  careful  to  provide  for  the  execution  of  my 
present  Sublime  Command.  Written  on  the  7th  of  moon  of  Zil,  etc., 
etc.,  A.H.  1284." 


DAKCIKO   DERVISHES. 


CHAPTER  VL 

TLE  CITY  OF   KING    HIKAM. 

REIVED  at  the  city  of  Tyre  about  sundown,  I  entered 
through  the  opening  where  until  recently  a  thick  and 
strongly  guarded  gate  stood,  and  I  felt  the  force  of  the 
expression  of  Isaiah :  "  Her  gates  lament  and  mourn  " 
(iii.  26).  Many  of  her  houses  are  desolate,  even  great  and 
fair,  without  inhabitants  (v.  9).  Her  fleets  of  richly  burdened  ships 
and  ranges  of  strong  forts  were  but  so  many  incentives  to  the  Grecian 
conqueror,  Alexander,  who,  flushed  with  his  conquest  over  Darius, 
came  down  here,  B.C.  332,  with  that  army  well  styled  "Invincible," 
the  rich  and  powerful  city  of  Sidou  surrendering  to  him  without  a 
struggle,  and  even  joining  her  fleets  to  his  to  aid  in  the  subjugation 
of  sister  cities,  and  these  massive  buttresses  of  Tyre  and  the  hosts 
of  gallant  men  behind  them  could  not  preserve  her  from  her  predict- 
ed doom.  As  Isaiah  had  written  nearly  four  centuries  before, 
"The  day  of  the  Lord  was  upon  every  high  tower,  and  upon  every 
fenced  wall,  and  upon  all  the  ships  of  Tarshish  "  (ii.  15).  Gravis  ira 
regum  semper — the  wrath  of  kings  is  always  dreadful ;  and  so  this 
magnificent  city  proved  under  the  hand  of  Alexander.  She  had  been 
a  stronghold,  in  which  silver  was  heaped  up  as  the  dust  and  fine  gold 
as  the  mire  of  streets;  but  the  Lord  cast  her  out  and  smote  her 
power  in  the  sea,  and  she  was  devoured  with  fire  (Zech.  ix.  2). 

I  was  lodged,  after  vacillating  between  the  military  barracks, 
the  room  over  the  blacksmith's  shop,  and  somebody's  convent  of 
male  sisters,  in  the  house  of  a  very  clever  man,  a  Christian,  who  lived 
in  his  second  story,  to  which  you  go  up  by  stone  steps  on  the  out- 
side, and  divided  the  ground-floor  between  stables  for  his  asses  and  a 
drinking  saloon,  in  which  his  oldest  son  sells  arrack  and  brandy  to 
the  soldiers.  It  was  a  private  house,  but  for  a  very  moderate  price 
he  took  me  in  and  provided  well  for  my  wants. 

Tyre  is  practically  a  city  under  ground.  It  lies,  like  Jerusalem, 
twenty  to  fifty  feet  beneath  a  debris  of  many  centuries.  Formerly 


TYRE   IN    ITS   DECAY. 

•eparated  from  the  shore  about  one  half-mile,  this  space  was  filled  in 
by  Alexander  the  Great  when  he  captured  the  city,  B.C.  332,  and  so 
became  an  isthmus.  I  saw  the  place  on  the  beach  where  that  fearful 
butcher  of  his  fellow-men  crucified  3,000  of  the  gallant  and  patri- 
otic defenders  of  Tyre.  The  location  is  now  a  peninsula  joined  by  a 
long  sandy  isthmus  to  the  mainland.  Its  latitude  is  33°  18'  N., 
longitude  35°  12'  E.  from  Greenwich.  The  ancient  word  "  Tzur  " 
means  a  rock.  The  city  is  said,  by  Josephus,  to  have  been  founded 
230  years  before  the  corner-stone  of  Solomon's  Temple  was  planted, 
that  is,  B.C.  1242.  It  was  never  a  republic,  like  most  of  the  ancient 
commercial  cities,  but  always  a  monarchy.  As  early  as  the  time  of 
Solomon  its  people  had  became  famous  for  their  skill  in  manufactures 
and  arts ;  and  Hiram,  the  widow's  son,  was  called  from  Gebal  by  King 
Hiram,  of  Tyre,  to  prepare  all  the  sacred  emblems  for  King  Solo- 
mon's Temple.  The  distance  travelled  by  him  from  Tyre  to  Jeru- 
salem, by  way  of  Joppa,  was  about  130  English  miles. 

I  advise  my  readers  to  take  the  first  Sunday  afternoon  they  have 
at  command,  and  read  critically  the  following  passages  giving  the 
best  biblical  history  of  Tyre.  This  is  better  than  for  me  to  crowd 
<K>  many  quotations  into  my  book. 

Joshua  xix.  29 ;  Judges  i.  31  and  32 ;  2  Samuel  xxiv.  7,  and  v.  11 ; 
L  Kings  vii.  13-45,  etc.;  2  Chronicles  xi.  16;  Joel  iii.;  Amos  i. 
9,  10;  Jeremiah  xxv.  22,  etc.;  Ezekiel  xxviii.,  xxvi.,  and  xxvii ; 
Zechariah  ix.  3. 

I  collected  very  large  quantities  of  relics,  coins,  funeral  lamps, 
tear-bottles,  and  specimens  of  various  kinds,  at  Tyre  and  vicinity. 
Having  the  friendship  of  the  American  Vice-Consul,  Mr.  Jacob 
Akkad,  and  of  the  commanding  officer  of  the  garrison,  Captain 
George  Demetry,  and  being  well  posted  in  the  objects  of  which  I  waa 
in  search,  I  let  no  opportunity  escape  me  to  secure  both  facts  and 
things.  I  could  not  hear  of  a  single  Freemason  at  Tyre. 

About  three  miles  southeast  of  the  city  there  is  a  remarkable 
spring  of  water,  styled,  in  Arabic,  Ras-el-Ain,  the  Head  of  the  Foun- 
tain. There  is  also  a  fountain  of  this  name  at  Baalbec.  The  local 
tradition  at  Tyre  is,  that  when  Hiram  had  done  all  the  work  which 
e  contracted  to  do  at  Jerusalem,  and  received  the  wages  of  "  corn> 
wine,  and  oil "  stipulated,  King  Solomon  showed  his  gratitude  for 
ill,  patience,  and  fidelity  of  his  Phoenician  allies  by  building,  at 
his  own  expense,  this  fountain-head,  with  a  costly  aqueduct,  to  con- 


THE   GREAT   GRANITE   COLUMN.  93 

vey  the  water  into  the  city.  Sufficient  portions  of  the  aqueduct 
remain  to  prove  that  it  was  a  magnificent  structure.  Amongst  the 
rest,  there  is  a  fragment  comprising  three  perfect  arches,  beautifully 
devised,  and  finely  preserved,  which  stand  at  the  eastern  point  of  the 
isthmus  that  connects  Tyre  with  the  mainland,  and  attract  the  eye 
of  every  traveller  approaching  Tyre,  either  from  the  north  or  south. 
These  three  arches,  erected  according  to  tradition  by  the  Masonic 
Pillar  of  Wisdom,  King  Solomon,  for  the  Masonic  Pillar  of  Strength, 
King  Hiram,  I  have  ventured  to  dedicate  as  follows : 

I.  The  Eastern  Arch  to  De  Witt  Clinton,  first  G.  G.  High-Priest 
of  the  G.  G.  Eoyal  Arch  Chapter  of  the  United  States. 

II.  The  Middle  Arch  to  Albert  G.  Mackey,  in  1859-65  G.  G.  High- 
Priest  of  the  same  body. 

III.  The  Western  Arch  to  John  L.  Lewis,  in  1865-8  G.  G.  High- 
Jriest  of  the  same  body. 

The  present  population  of  this  renowned  city  is  between  3,000  and 
4,000  ;  about  one-half  being  Arabs  of  the  Metawileh  tribe,  the  other 
half  Christians  of  various  Roman  Catholic  sects,  and  a  sprinkling  of 
Protestants.  The  old  wall  is  built  across  the  isthmus,  and  its  gate 
is  still  in  use,  more  as  a  convenient  military  post  than  anything  else, 
for  the  town  is  in  no  sense  protected  by  it.  Among  the  ruins  is  a 
block  of  stone  bearing  the  unmistakable  mark  of  the  Phoenician  archi- 
tects (the  level  or  relate),  which  measures  seventeen  feet  in  length. 
A  double  column  of  red  granite  lies  among  the  ruins  of  the  ancient 
cathedral  at  Tyre,  six  feet  in  diameter  and  twenty-six  feet  long !  This 
is  the  largest  single  piece  of  stone,  artificially  wrought,  that  I  saw  in 
the  Holy  Land.  One-  of  the  former  governors  of  Acre,  twenty- five 
miles  below  here,  about  seventy  years  ago,  undertook  to  have  it 
removed  there,  but  all  the  skill  and  machinery  his  engineers  could 
apply  to  it  failed  to  stir  the  monument.  Don't  let  the  visitor  to 
Tyre  fail  to  visit  this  pillar. 

Never,  surely,  was  a  country  where  money  is  worshipped  as  here. 
It  is  the  true  idol  that  Mohammed  left  after  destroying  the  others. 
The  poet  Virgil,  had  he  known  it,  would  have  located  his  auri  sacra 
fames,  the  accursed  greed  of  gold,  in  these  Oriental  parts ;  and  we 
may  well  propound  Virgil's  inquiry,  Quid  non  mortalia  pectora 
cogis  ? — to  what  crimes  dost  thou  not  impel  a  mortal's  breast  ?  Pro- 
pertius  justly  embodies  the  thought  in  the  words,  Auro  pulsa  fides, 
auro  venalia  jura,  Aurum  lex  sequitur  ;  for  such  is  the  condition  of 
Syrian  morals,  as  all  writers,  native  and  foreign,  admit  Those  who 


%,  THE  CATHEDRAL  OF  TYRE. 

have  heard  our  good  brother,  the  moralist,  Abd-el-Kader,  preach  to 
hifl  theological  classes  at  Damascus,  affirm  that  his  denunciations 
against  this  greedy  covetousness  of  the  people  are  severe.  The  deri- 
sion in  which  he  holds  up  the  miser  to  his  auditors  is  terrible,  while 
the  consolation  he  gives  to  the  generous  is  inspired  both  by  the 
precepts  of  his  own  Koran  and  the  Holy  Scriptures  of  Masonry. 

We  perceive,  in  Acts  ix.  19,  that  a  church  was  established  here 
dating  from  the  martyrdom  of  St.  Stephen,  proto-martyr ;  and  thr 
only  edifice  whose  ruins  have  not  been  entirely  removed,  or  so  much 
disarranged  that  the  plans  are  entirely  lost,  is  the  old  Christian 
Cathedral  built  about  A.D.  310. 

In  this  now  ruined  but  once  glorious  church,  whose  apsides  are 
used  by  the  natives  for  privies,  once  lived  the  historian,  William  of 
Tyre.  Among  all  the  great  men  whose  names  are  associated  with 
this  Phoenician,  Roman,  and  mediaeval  city,  none  are  more  worthy 
of  remembrance  than  William.  Here,  too,  preached  Eusebius,  and 
his  Dedication  Address,  still  preserved  in  his  works,  reads  like  the 
hundreds  of  Masonic  dedicatory  effusions,  to  which  pile  I  myself 
have  added  some  weak  specimens. 

The  Christian  Father  Origen  is  also  buried  here,  and  here  mouldei 
the  bones  of  Frederick  Barbarossa,  of  Germany,  whose  splendid  career 
was  brought  to  an  ignominious  close  by  a  trifling  accident.  The 
funeral  procession  of  Frederick,  as  it  came  down  from  Tarsus,  past 
Gebal,  Beyrout,  and  Sidon,  some  three  hundred  miles,  must  have 
awakened  memories  among  the  Freemasons  of  that  grander  funeral 
of  Hiram  of  Tyre,  two  thousand  years  before. 

Many  natives  of  Tyre  are  afflicted  with  'sore  and  inflamed  eyes, 
either  by  reflected  heat  upon  this  calcareous  soil,  or  by  the  sharp, 
acrid  nature  of  the  soil  itself,  when  raised  in  dust.  Judging  from 
the  exquisite  specimens  of  engraving  on  precious  stones  that  are  dug 
up  here,  I  should  think  the  old  artists  had  better  eyesight  than  I  see 
here  now. 

A  writer  has  accumulated  in  one  sentence  a  strong  sketch  of  Tyre : 
Prostrate  and  broken  columns,  dilapidated  temples,  mounds  of 
buried  fragments,  mark  the  once  proud  and  populous  city." 

saw  in  the  bay,  north  of  the  town,  the  graceful,  gull-billed  tern 

i  Anglica),  which  loves  calm  and  shallow  water,  and  in  its 

nee  gives  omen  of  fine  settled  weather;  also,  the  Adriatic  gull 

tnis  melanocephalus),  quietly  riding  in  the  scarcely  perceptible 

These  natural  history  facts  and  others  I  derive  from  Brother 


THE   AMERICAN   VICE-CONSUL.  95 

H.  B.  Tristam's  most  readable  work,  "The  Land  of  Israel,"  not 
republished  in  this  ceuntry.  It  is  full  of  allusions  to  birds,  beasts, 
flowers,  and  reptiles.  He  has  also  published  a  "  Natural  History  of 
Palestine,"  which  I  bought  in  Jerusalem. 

About  a  century  ago,  Tyre  was  destroyed,  with  its  inhabitants,  by 
an  earthquake.  In  the  rebuilding,  the  houses  are  mean,  both  in 
style  and  composition ;  low,  built  of  rough  stones,  arched  within,  flat 
on  the  roof,  and  inclosing  a  quadrangle.  The  walls  surmounting 
the  roof  for  battlements  are  wrought  through  with  pottery  tubes  to 
catch  and  strike  down  the  refreshing  winds,  at  the  same  time  they 
conceal  the  persons  on  the  roof  from  neighboring  eyes.  Often  the 
roofs  are  covered  with  mats  and  hurdles.  Since  the  awful  convul- 
sion of  the  last  century,  the  houses  are  built  smaller  and  lower  than 
formerly,  recalling  forcibly  the  passage  relative  to  Zacynthus,  "  The 
streets  unpaved,  the  buildings  low,  by  reason  of  the  often  earthquakes 
whereunto  the  town  is  miserably  subject." 

Somebody  had  presented  an  Arab  here  with  a  phrenological  bust 
(or  may-be  he  stole  it), indorsed  on  the  back,  "Description  of  charac- 
ter, with  advice  as  to  best  pursuit,  self-improvement,"  etc.,  and  had 
told  him  it  was  a  likeness  of  Jeff.  Davis,  leader  in  the  American 
rebellion,  and  it  was  pleasant  to  see  the  fellow's  awe  as  he  pointed  ii 
out  to  me.  But  it  was  useless  to  explain  the  "  sell "  to  him,  although 
I,  who  have  known  Mr.  Davis  ever  since  1848,  could  enjoy  it. 

Esculapius  was  associated  with  the  city  of  Tyre,  and  so  every 
barber's  pole  in  the  universe  is  in  some  sense  a  Masonic  emblem 
referring  to  this  place.  The  god  of  medicine  and  patron  of  the 
barber's  pole  had  listened  to  the  rustling  of  leaves,  the  tones  of 
water-fall  and  wave,  the  songs  of  birds,  and  the  hum  of  insects,  in 
this  then  beautiful  land,  until  he  learned  to  make  music  for  himself. 
I  thought  of  him  as  I  sat  on  the  rocks  one  twilight  evening,  the  sea 
and  sky  of  such  even  and  utter  blueness  that  any  visible  horizon  is 
out  of  the  question. 

Among  my  pleasant  memories  of  the  days  spent  in  Tyre  was  a 
visit  to  the  good  Jacob  Akkad,  for  very  many  years  United  States 
Vice-Consul  of  Tyre.  He  signalized  my  call  upon  him  by  raising 
the  flag  of  our  country  upon  the  staff  that  dominates  the  roof  of  his 
two-story  house.  As  in  all  these  dwellings,  his  family  reside  in  the 
second  story,  the  lower  being  used  for  stables,  etc.  In  a  neighboring 
house  a  woman  was  having  that  sorrow  in  travail  because  her  time 
had  come  (John  xv.  21),  which  so  moves  the  sensibility  of  everj 


flg  THE   LEGENDS   OF   TYBE. 

feeling  heart    I  sent  up  a  heartfelt  petition  that  she  might  have  a 

safe  delivery. 

In  the  centre  of  Akkad's  room  was  a  stool  (souffra),  with  as  many 
cushions  around  it  as  there  were  guests.  The  servant  brought  in 
gweetmeate,  sherbet,  coffee,  and  cigarettes.  Each  of  us  took  a  mouth- 
ful of  the  jelly  from  the  common  spoon,  drank  a  mouthful  of  sherbet, 
and  supped  a  cup  of  the  thick,  black,  highly-sweetened  coflee,  very 
aromatic.  These  people  never  parch  coflee  until  about  to  use  it,  and 
make- it  as  muddy  as  chocolate,  because  they  pound  the  grains  instead 
of  grinding  them.  They  stir  it  up  slab  with  a  spoon.  The  coffee- 
cup  is  a  trifle  larger  than  half  an  egg-shell,  and,  being  very  hot,  is 
placed  for  use  in  a  metal  receiver  called  a  fingan,  so  as  not  to  burn 
the  fingers. 

In  the  Vice-Consul's  office  I  saw  a  sheikh  (pronounced  sliek) 
signing  an  agreement  with  another  sheikh  (pronounced  sliek  also), 
by  simplv  dipping  his  finger  in  the  ink  and  pressing  it  on  the 
paper,  as  I  did  many  a  time  in  boyish  days.  The  seal  thus  formed 
resembled  a  squashed  bed-bug.  Somehow,  it  reminded  me  of  Mephis- 
topheles  and  the  fellow  who  sold  his  soul's  salvation,  and  sealed  the 
parchment  with  a  drop  of  blood.  I  should  like  to  see  the  original 
papyrus  agreement  between  Solomon  and  Hiram,  doubtless  signed 
and  sealed  in  this  very  town,  and  compare  it  with  the  sheikhs' 
contract,  which  was  something  concerning  a  sucking  colt  and  a  small 
patch  of  barley. 

But  the  good  Yacob  Akkad,  intent  as  he  was  on  hospitable  cares, 
was  not  unmindful  of  the  adage,  oculus  domini  saginat  equum — the 
eye  of  the  master  fattens  the  horse,  as  his  frequent  visits  to  his 
laborers  in  garden  and  orchard  testified.  He  works  quite  a  number 
of  hands,  and,  it  is  said,  gets  his  money's  worth  out  of  them. 

Leaving  his  house,  I  met  four  men  walking  in  a  line  behind  each 
other,  each  one  barefoot  and  with  drooping  head.  The  leader  had 
lost  a  friend  by  death,  and  his  companions  were  mourning  with  him 
for  company.  This  was  like  David  when  he  walked  barefoot  with  his 
head  covered,  in  his  sorrow,  up  the  Mou^t  of  Olives  (2  Sam.  xv.  30). 

There  is  no  end  to  the  legends  related  of  Tyre.  One  was  told  six 
hundred  years  ago  of  a  stone  still  lying  in  front  of  the  gate  on  which 
jsus  sat  when  he  preached  (for  all  Oriental  discourses  were  and  are 
preached  sitting,  and  so  the  Worshipful  Master  should  always 
remain  seated  while  giving  instructions  to  his  lodge!),  and  as  He  sat 
there  He  forgave  the  Canaanitish  woman,  as  the  Scripture  sayeth. 


A    PRACTICAL   JOKE.  97 

In  times  of  old,  Tyre  was  the  metropolis,  the  New  York  of  the 
Mediterranean  coast.  Everything  to  be  shipped  was  shipped  from 
this  poit,  and  what  they  could  not  purchase  they  made.  Commerce, 
for  ages,  could  only  be  done  by  these  people ;  they  were  truly  what 
the  British  for  some  centuries  claimed  to  be,  lords  of  the  seas.  The 
perusal  of  the  27th  chapter  of  Ezekiel  illustrates  this  point  thor- 
oughly. Written  about  B.C.  590,  it  is  as  minute  as  a  Philadelphia 
merchant's  invoice  of  goods  shipped,  and,  had  I  space  here,  I  would 
insert  it  entire.  It  was  from  Tyre  that  the  itinera  mercatorum — the 
roads  of  the  traders,  all  diverged,  and  in  the  oldest  atlas  they  are 
marked  in  red  ink.  They  ran  from  Tyre  into  the  heart  of  Africa, 
skirted  the  Mediterranean  coast,  wound  through  the  Straits  of 
Gibraltar  along  by  Portugal  and  France,  penetrated  Arabia ;  in  short, 
searched  out  every  place  in  the  world  where  products  could  be 
exchanged  for  products,  and  profits  made. 

As  a  fitting  group  of  American  Craftsmen  to  associate  with  this 
illustrious  locality,  I  enroll  the  ten  following:  John  J.  Crane,  Eobert 
D.  Holmes  (deceased),  Kobert  Macoy,  C.  M.  Hatch,  H:  J:  Goodrich, 
H.  D.  Hosmer,  Albert  G.  Hodges,  James  R  Hartsock,  Rev.  C.  F.  Deems, 
RF.  Bower. 

I  ought  to  be  sorry  to  record  that  I  gave  utter  and  irreconcilable 
offence  to  a  Eoman  priest  here,  a  man  with  both  feet  bare,  a  cable- 
tow  four  times  round  his  unwashed  body,  and  his  head  shaved,  by 
asking  him  why  it  was  that  he  was  called  Father  when  he  had  no 
children.  The  disgust  with  which  he  contemplated  my  question 
prevented  him  from  waiting  for  the  lacksheesh  which  I  was  about 
to  give  him. 

A  story  more  modern  and  better  established  than  that  I  have  just 
given,  illustrates  the  biography  of  a  former  governor  of  this  district, 
whose  name,  I  am  sorry  to  say,  I  have  forgotten.  He  had  orders  from 
the  Vali  (Pasha)  at  Damascus,  to  secure  a  certain  number  of  con- 
scripts for  the  army,  but  could  contrive  no  ordinary  way  to  catch 
them.  So  he  gave  out  that  he  was  opening  the  old  water-channels 
that  connect  the  city  with  Ras-el-Ain,  and  offered  large  wages  to  all 
who  would  come  and  dig.  In  this  way  the  unsuspecting  and  hard-fisted 
farmers  of  the  locality  were  deluded.  They  came  in  a  hundred 
strong,  and  just  as  they  got  fairly  into  the  trenches  digging,  a  detach- 
ment of  troops  surrounded  them,  seized,  bound,  and  brought  them 
before  the  Regimental  Surgeon  for  inspection.  To  his  credit,  it  is 
said,  he  passed  them  all  except  two,  who  had  but  one  leg  each,  and 

7 


K  POOR  SUCCESS  AS  A   FLUTIST. 

one  who  had  psoriasis  (if  that's  the  word  for  itch)  horribly ;  the  latter 
was  put  in  jail  till  he  got  well.  The  rest  were  "  grafted  into  the 
army,"  and  are  probably  there  yet  The  whole  thing,  as  a  joke,  was 
considered  a  success. 

Oa  another  page  I  have  alluded  to  the  great  Syenite  column,  six 
feet  by  twenty-six,  that  lies  in  the  court-yard  of  the  ancient  Basilica. 
This  glorious  shaft,  a  worthy  representative  of  the  Broken  Shaft 
buried  with  such  mourning  rites  at  Jerusalem,  is  own  brother  to  those 
in  Egypt,  proceeding  from  the  same  quarry  of  Syene,  and  equally 
related  to  the  granite  beams  of  the  King's  Chamber  in  the  Great 
Pyramid  of  Cheops.  The  Egyptians  seem  always  to  have  thought  of 
gigantic  constructions  when  they  used  this  Syenitic  granite.  The 
measurements  of  those  beams  just  named  will  be  given  hereafter. 

It  is  a  very  singular  fact  that  in  the  ruins  of  Konyunjih,  near 
M"sul,  in  Mesopotamia,  there  still  exists  a  slab  of  stone  on  which  is 
delineated  this  ancient  city  of  Tyre,  with  its  palm-trees,  fishes,  a  man 
carrying  a  banner,  etc.,  etc.,  with  really  artistic  minuteness. 

It  is  pleasant  to  see  how  little  language  a  man  can  get  along  with 
when  he  tries.  The  first  time  1  was  at  Tyre,  I  always  had  to  call 
Hassan  to  communicate  my  most  familiar  wishes  to  the  family  and 
visitors.  The  second  time  I  came  to  Tyre,  Hassan  had  been  left 
behind  at  Tibnin  with  a  foundered  horse,  and  I  can  say  in  strictness 
that  there  wasn't  a  man  in  the  place  with  whom  I  could  exchange  a 
single  thought  But  it  made  no  particular  difference. 

I  shall  never  forget  the  second  night  I  spent  in  Tyre.  The  officers 
of  the  garrison,  very  friendly  and  courteous  men  they  were,  had  come 
up  to  smoke  their  pipes  and  talk  to  the  great  American  Howadji. 
After  entertaining  them  as  well  as  I  could,  I  played  the  Freemasons' 
h,  that  oldest  of  Masonic  tunes,  to  which  many  generations  have 
stepped  briskly,  returning  from  fraternal  graves,  my  flute  being  the 
same  silver-lined  instrument  inscribed,  "  Presented  to  Rob  Morris, 
T.,  May,  1855,  by  the  Freemasons  of  New  York,"  an  event  that 
elicited  the  since  celebrated  flute-story  from  John  W.  Simons,  and 
a  good  many  other  stories  from  the  genial  fellows  who  were  gathered 
round  Thayer's  table  that  night  at  383  Broadway.  Will  the  reader 
believe  me,  after  those  heathens  had  admired  the  silver  bands  of  the 
flute,  and  amused  themselves  with  the  way  I  puckered  up  my  lips  in 
making  the  embouchure,  they  turned  away  without  being  in  the  least 
impressed  with  the  music  itself!  This  was  my  first  and  last  attempt 
at  emulating  Ossian  E.  Dodge  while  in  the  Holy  Land. 


A    PAGE   FROM   A    DIARY.  9S 

During  my  stay  here,  I  experienced  a  touch  of  the  KJiamseen,  that 
celebrated  desert-wind  known  in  its  perfection  as  the  Simoom  and 
Sirocco.  '  Afterwards,  at  Beyrout,  I  felt  its  effects  more  severely.  It 
excited  nervous  irritation,  made  me  dyspeptic,  shortened  my  sleep, 
and  gave  me  slow  fever.  Its  name,  denoting  fifty,  implies  the  length 
of  time  it  usually  traverses  the  desert.  The  amount  of  dust  carried 
before  it  is  suggested  by  a  storm  December  24,  1870,  in  Clinton 
County,  Indiana,  in  which  600  tons  of  dust  fell  within  a  radius  of 
twenty  miles ;  so  says  Prof.  J.  Twigley,  before  the  American  Associa- 
tion for  Advancement  of  Science,  at  its  session  in  1871. 

The  custom  of  keeping  a  lamp  burning  all  night  in  the  house  is 
universal  throughout  the  East,  and  to  me  quite  disagreeable ;  so  I 
blew  mine  out  at  Tyre  every  time.  Stevens  describes  a  man  living 
in  a  tomb  on  the  banks  of  the  Nile,  who  keeps  his  night-lamp  going 
as  steadily  as  the  one  in  the  lighthouse  on  the  Skellig  rock.  An 
irreverent  friend  has  suggested,  in  view  of  the  buggy  condition  of  the 
native  houses,  that  may-be  this  lamp  is  burned  to  deceive  the  insects 
as  to  the  time.  If  so,  it  was  a  failure. 

An  hour's  nooning,  seated  upon  the  tradition-stone  I  have  named, 
in  the  shade  of  the  fountain  outside  the  town,  was  spent  in  making 
notes,  some  of  which  I  group  together  here  for  want  of  space. 

An  old  man  coming  for  water,  so  very  ancient  that,  in  Tennyson's 
words :  "  The  man  was  no  more  than  a  voice  in  the  white  winter  of 
his  age."  The  sight  of  the  prostrate  columns  yonder  covered  with 
nets  placed  there  to  dry,  recalls  the  lines : 

Like  the  stained  web  that  whitens  in  the  sun, 
And  purer  grows  by  being  shone  upon. 

The  extremely  fine  work  I  see  upon  the  ancient  gems  exhumed 
here  every  day,  cornelian,  jasper,  emerald,  chalcedony,  etc.,  remind 
me  that  recent  researches  at  Konyunjih  show  the  use  of  the  microscope 
in  ancient  times.  Minute  lens  and  specula  of  magnifying  lens  have 
been  found.  A  cone  engraved  with  a  table  of  cubes,  too  small  to  be 
visible  by  the  naked  eye,  is  now  in  the  British  Museum,  found  in 
Persia,  and  attributed  to  a  very  ancient  date.  Some  of  the  lodges  in 
America  are  named  after  those  Oriental  gems,  viz.,  Cornelian,  40, 
Minn.,  etc.,  far  more  appropriate  than  that  of  High  Log  Lodge,  Grass- 
copper  Falls  Lodge,  Bear  Wallow  Lodge,  and  the  like.  Maundeville, 
A.D.  1322,  wrote  that  here,  at  Tyre,  was  once  a  great  and  good  city 
of  the  Christians;  on  the  sea-side  many  rubies  were  found,  and  the 
well  is  here  of  which  Solomon  wrote,  "a  fountain  of  gardens  and  a 
well  of  living  waters."  (Song  iv.  15).  The  great  use  made  of  blue 
iye  in  this*  country,  in  coloring  the  cotton  and  woolen  fabrics  so 


1(>0  COMPLIMENTS   TO   HIRAM. 

universally  worn,  dates  back  to  B.C.  1500,  and  is  suggested  in  the 
Mosaic  code,  where  the  lawgiver  requires  every  Jew  to  wear  a  fnnge 
of  blue.  The  poet  has  referred  to  this  color  in  the  lines— 

The  deep,  deep  bine,  the  melancholy  dress 
Bokhara's  maidens  wear,  in  mindfulness 
Of  friends  or  kindred,  dead  or  far  away. 

A  fellow  passed  me,  so  small,  he  ought  to  carry  weights  in  his  pockets 
to  keep  from  being  blown  away,  as  the  poet  Philetas  of  Cos  did,  B.C. 
330.  The  style  of  Arabs  who  people  this  place,  called  Metawely,  very 
mnch  resemble  the  Jew  in  features  ;  but  they  are  more  fanatical  than 
the  descendant  of  Abraham  ever  was.  I  had  picked  up  a  plow  one 
day  belonging  to  a  Metawely,  and  he  cursed  me  by  all  his  gods  for 
touching  it,  swearing  that  he  would  never  use  it  again.  He  called 
mi-  kelb  (dog),  and  I  called  him  kelb  back  again.  The  hatred  of  this 
miserable  race  against  the  Christians  is  foreshadowed  by  David,  in 
the  expressions,  "  They  that  sit  in  the  gate  speak  against  me  ;  and  I 
was  the  song  of  the  drunkards  "  (Ps.  Ixix.  12)  ;  "  a  brutish  man  know- 
c-th  not  "  (xcii.  6),  and  scores  of  others.  But  it  would  do  no  good  to 
quote  David  against  a  Metawely,  so  I  simply  called  the  fellow  kelb. 
Mt-thodius,  Bishop  of  Tyre,  was  martyred  here  A.D.  1311.  They  tell 
a  story  of  the  "Ladder  of  Tyre  "yonder,  that  a  bold  fellow  once 
jumped  from  the  top  of  it,  in  the  style  of  our  Sam  Patch,  and  swam 
to  Tyre!  I  was  offered  to-day  an  ancient  marble  statue  dug  up  here 
a  few  years  since.  It  is  that  of  a  female  figure,  a  matron,  full  size, 
moderately  robed,  and  in  admirable  preservation.  Were  it  not  for 
th<-  difficulty  of  transportation  I  would  not  have  begrudged  the 
price.  The  number  of  lodges  in  America  named  from  Tyre  is  very 
large.  I  instance  a  few.  as  derived  from  my  "  Old  Prudence-Book  " 
of  1868:  No.  73,  Maine;  Nos.  187  and  198,  Texas;  No.  18,  Michigan  ; 
No.  5,  Mississippi.  In  England*  No.  315  derives  its  title  from  the 
same  source. 

The  name  of  Hiram  has  been  still  more  extensively  adopted  in 

lodge  nomenclature,  as  witness  No.  4,  Kentucky  ;  No.  28,  Illinois  ; 

No.  21,  Virginia;  Nos.  18  and  88,  Ohio;  No.  70,"  Louisiana  ;  No.  42, 

Indiana;   No.  10,  D.  C.  ;  No.  7,  Tennessee;  No.  5,  Florida;  Nos.  21 

and  51,  Georgia;  Nos.  40  and  98,  N.  C.  ;  Nos.  105,  144,  and  449, 

New  York;  No.  103,  Maryland;   No.  51,  Wis.  ;   No.  7,  Iowa;  Nos. 

12,  Ct;  No.  43,  Cal.;  No.  110,  Michigan  ;  Nos.  37,  78,  and  89. 

.anuda;  No.  42,  Alabama;  No.  9,  New  Hampshire;  Nos.  81  and 

261,  Pa.;  fcos.  14,  30,  and  95,  Mass.,  etc. 


I  spent  a  quiet  and  solitary  hour  on  the  sea-shore  reading  Acts 

xxi.,  in  which  the  visit  of  Paul  to  Tyre,  some  1,800  years  ago,  is 

'scribed.    I  had  been  in  Paul's  tracks  for  several  weeks,  and  become 

omewhat  familiar  with  his  movements.    In  the  present  instance,  he 

was  on  his  way  from  Miletus  and  Rhodes  to  Jerusalem,  and  had 


ST.  PAUL'S  VISIT.  (' 

"  landed  at  Tyre,  for  there  the  ship  was  to  unlade  her  burden."  He 
remained  here  seven  days,  and  as  he  departed  all  the  Christian  people 
followed  him  out  of  the  city  with  their  wives  and  children,  and 
kneeled  down  on  the  shore  and  prayed.  To  peruse  the  account  on 
the  spot  gives  it  a  reality. 

In  closing  this  chapter,  I  would  say  that,  while  there  are  no  mem- 
bers of  the  Masonic  society  resident  here,  quite  a  number  of  native 
gentlemen,  civil  and  military,  and  some  foreigners,  "  have  long 
entertained"  the  necessary  "opinion,"  and  were  a  lodge  opened, 
either  in  Sidon,  twenty-five  miles  north,  or  Acre  (or  Caifa),  the 
same  distance  south,  these  would  become  petitioners.  And  while 
Tyre  is  scarcely  adapted,  by  the  character  of  its  population,  for  a 
permanent  lodge,  those  wh'o,  like  myself,  feel  that  the  home  of  Hiram 
should  not  be  entirely  overlooked,  could  unite  in  the  plan  in  regard 
to  Ephesus,  which  resembles  Tyre  in  the  same  particular.  There, 
while  the  lodge  is  nominally  located  at  Ephesus,  the  members  all 
live  at  Smyrna,  twenty-five  miles  north,  and  go  together,  by  day,  on 
the  regular  occasions,  to  open  the  lodge  at  Ephesus  and  do  its  regu- 
lar work.  So  the  brethren  at  Sidon,  Acre  or  Caifa,  might  have  a 
lodge  at  Tyre  without  being  residents  here. 


COIN    OF    ALEXANDER.      STRUCK    AT   TYRX. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  TOMB   OF   HIKAM. 

Tuesday,  April  14th,  as  I  have  said,  I  arrived  at  Tyr«, 
after  two  days'  hard  horseback  exercise  from  Bey  rout,  and 
early  next  morning,  April  15th,  went  out  five  miles  east, 
to  view  the  celebrated  monument  of  antiquity,  called  by 
the  natives  Kabr  Hairan,  meaning  Hiram's  Tomb.     In 
the  survey  of  this  old  relic  I  spent  the  day,  returning  late  in  the 
afternoon  to  Tyre,  and  made  a  second  visit  to  it  a  month  later. 

The  way  thither  is  through  the  only  gate  of  Tyre  now  in  use. 
There  all  day  long  a  group  of  men  sit  smoking,  chatting  and  enjoy- 
ing their  dolce  far  mente,  as  the  Italians  have  it.  Nobody  reads 
newspapers  in  Tyre  ;  this  group  of  observant  idlers  is  so  thoroughly 
posted  in  all  Tyrian  news,  that  what  they  don't  know  isn't  worth 
knowing.  They  discussed  me  for  several  days  in  all  my  bearings, 
and  I  hope  came  to  favorable  conclusions.  A  splendidly  carved 
marble  sarcophagus,  once  of  large  cost  and  rare  beauty,  lies  a  hun- 
dred yards  in  front  of  the  gate,  degraded  now  to  the  uses  of  a  horse- 
trough  !  On  its  four  corners  are  rams'  heads  beautifully  carved.  It 
much  resembles  a  sarcophagus  that  I  saw  at  Q-ebal  a  few  weeks 
since. 

Everybody  I  meet  here  has  a  welcome  word  and  sign  for  me, 
except  those  ill-conditioned  brutes,  the  Metawelies.  They  are  on  a 
par  with  the  publicans,  of  whom  the  Great  Teacher  said,  "  if  ye 
salute  your  brethren  only,  what  do  ye  more  than  others  ?  "  (Matt.  v. 
47),  for  they  pay  no  sort  of  attention  to  my  most  graceful  of  salaams, 
or  my  cheeriest  of  "  how  are  ye,  my  bully  boys  ?  "  with  which  I  greet 
them  day  after  day,  with  unwearying  patience. 

I  crossed  the  isthmus  connecting  the  island,  on  which  Tyre  was 
originally  built,  with  the  mainland,  now  only  a  dreary  waste  of  white 
sand,  drift  upon  drift.  This  Isthmus  seems  to  have  been  crowded  as 


104 


CAMELS   AXD   CHARCOAL. 


far  into  the  water  as  it  can  be.  I  do  not  think  that  even  the  display  of 
Eshers'  nets  spread  over  the  costly  marble  and  granite  ruins  of  Tyre 
affect  me  so  much  as  this  cheerless  waste  of  sand.  If  a  man  would 
have  a  lesson  of  the  mutuability  of  earthly  things,  let  him  stand 
npon  the  eminence  where  the  sand-billows  have  drifted  the  highest, 
and  read  from  the  twenty-seventh  and  twenty-eighth  chapters  of 
Ezekiel  such  passages  as  these :  "  Thou  sealest  up  the  sum,  full  of 
wisdom  and  perfect  beauty.  Thy  borders  are  in  the  midst  of  the 
seas,  thy  builders  have  perfected  thy  beauty,"  and  other  paragraphs 
of  this  nature ;  then  cast  his  eye  over  yonder  poor  crumbling  ruins 
called  Tyre,  its  magnificent  church  reduced  to  fragments  of  walls 
whose  inclosures  are  used  for  the  vilest  purposes,  its  triple  walls  bro- 
ken down,  its  incalculable  traffic  comprised  now  in  a  few  small  boats. 
But  the  theme  is  too  painful  to  contemplate  this  charming  April 
day,  so  I  turn  my  back  upoii  it  and  ride  eastward,  cheerily  whistling 
«*  Over  the  hills  and  far  away." 

I  have  nowhere  seen  such  a  number  of  camels  as  throng  this  road. 
They  are  loaded  chiefly  with  charcoal  from  the  mountains,  each  of 
the  huge  beasts  carrying  two  immense  hampers  filled  with  it.  Fuel 
is  so  scarce  in  this  country  that  no  one  thinks  of  making  a  fire  for 
any  purpose  save  cooking,  and  for  that  charcoal  is  the  cheapest.  It 
is  shipped  from  here,  up  and  down  the  coast  in  considerable  quanti- 
ties by  the  small  coasting-boats.  Many  of  these  camels,  however,  are 
loaded  with  millstones,  made  of  the  hard,  black,  indestructible  basalt 
that  lies  heaped  in  petrified  billows  east  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee.  These 
are  also  shipped  in  different  directions,  and  form  one  of  the  leading  arti- 
cles of  Tyrian  traffic.  As  the  daily  "  Prices- Current"  of  Tyre  are  not 
published,  I  could  not  find  out  the  vuling  prices  of  i  aillstones. 

The  plain  of  Tyre,  after  I  passed  the  sand-drifts,  is  extremely  beau- 
tiful The  barley,  the  principal  grain  raised  upon  it  at  the  present 
day,  is  at  this  time  about  a  foot  high,  and  looks  promising.  Doubt- 
less a  good  system  of  farming  would  develop  immense  crops  here ;  but 
the  native  plows  only  tickle  the  ground ;  no  manure  is  used,  the  seed 
IB  scantily  sown,  and  everything  is  done  in  a  barbarous  way.  Many 
groves  of  mulberry-trees  attract  the  eye,  and  I  learn  upon  inquiry 
that  an  attempt  is  making  to  raise  silk  here.  I  apprehend,  however, 
that  the  unhealthiness  of  the  neighborhood  will  always  make  against 
that  They  have  the  «  chills  and  fever  "  around  Tyre  as  bad  as  in  the 
Wabash  swamps  of  Indiana. 

In  about  one  hour's  ride  I  begin  to  ascend  the  hills,  the  snow 


MOSAIC  PAVEMENT.  105 

capped  Lebanon s  seeming  to  rise  just  before  me,  though  I  know  very 
well  that  a  day's  hard  riding  will  not  more  than  reach  them.  This  is 
one  of  the  most  charming  days  I  have  seen  in  Palestine,  and  my  very 
soul  and  lungs  expand  as  I  draw  in  this  invigorating  breeze  from 
Lebanon.  The  mountain-sides  are  black  with  goats,  the  villeys  are 
white  with  sheep ;  the  voices  of  their  keepers,  calling  to  each  other, 
reach  my  ears,  mellowed  in  the  distance ;  and  as  I  observe  the  little 
lambs  tenderly  cared  for  by  their  rude  Arab  keepers,  I  feel  involun- 
tarily to  burst  forth,  as  the  shepherd-poet  at  Bethlehem :  "  The 
Lord  is  MY  shepherd,  I  shall  not  want.  He  maketh  ME  to 
lie  down  in  green  pastures ;  he  leadeth  ME  beside  the  still  waters. 
He  restoreth  my  soul."  May  I  never  be  less  submissive  to  HIM  than 
these  poor  creatures  are  to  their  shepherd. 

Seeing  a  large  upright  stone  on  the  top  of  a  high  hill  on  the  left,  I 
leave  my  horse  with  Hassan,  and  scramble  up  to  it  through  a  field  of 
barley.  It  is  an  immense  block,  having  a  chiselled  groove  down  the 
side,  and,  as  I  afterwards  learned  from  the  well-posted  missionary, 
Dr.  W.  M.  Thomson,  at  Beyrout,  author  of  Land  and  Book,  it  is  part 
of  an  olive-press.  But  the  very  olive-trees  that  supplied  the  fruit  for 
this  press  have  disappeared ;  even  their  stumps  are  gone,  and  the  press 
has  been,  perhaps,  a  thousand  years  out  of  use.  Near  it  is  a 
large  cistern  cut  in  the  solid  rock,  well  cemented  on  the  sides  and  bot- 
tom. A  few  steps  lower  down  are  the  remains  of  a  house  in  which,  to  my 
delight,  I  found  large  patches  of  a  Mosaic  pavement,  so  interesting 
to  a  Freemason.  This  led  me  to  call  for  my  chisel  and  hammer, 
and  I  soon  collected  enough  of  the  tessercs  from  this  checker-work 
to  fill  my  carpet-bag.  I  afterwards  collected  stores  of  similar  objects 
from  Mount  Zion  at  Jerusalem,  Mount  Olivet,  and  other  places. 
There  are  no  remains  of  Hebrew,  Greek  and  Roman  periods  so  nu- 
merous as  patches  of  the  Mosaic  pavement. 

Going  on  eastward  I  open  my  eyes  widely  to  catch  the  first  view 
of  Hiram's  Tomb.  I  make  my  two  servants  fall  behind  me  in  the 
road.  No  one  shall  point  it  out  to  me.  I  press  on,  having  two 
eagles  a  mile  or  so  overhead,  leaving  on  my  right  and  left  great  frag- 
ments of  pillars,  and  chapiters,  and  sarcophagi,  and  deep  pits  cut  in  the 
solid  rock  for  the  reception  of  water  for  Hiram's  men  in  the  older 
times.  I  pass  by  groves  of  olives  and  figs,  my  kingly  birds  watch 
ing  me  keenly.  I  see,  upon  a  steep  hill  to  the  right,  the  town  of 
Hanaweigh,  built,  as  Dr.  Thomson  informs  me,  out  of  the  ruins  of 
the  country  seats  and  summer  residences  of  Tyre's  merchant-prince* 


106 


FIRST  VIEW   OF  THE   KABR. 


that  once  crowned  these  hills.  I  meet  caravan  after  caravan  oi 
camels,  with  their  loads  of  charcoal,  so  suggestive  of  that  Masonic 
fervency  on  which  I  have  so  often  expatiated.  But  I  have  no  eyea 
for  these  things ;  I  am  watching  out  for  Kabr  Hairan,  the  sepulchre 

of  Hiram. 

Yonder  it  is!  It  is  worth  coming  all  the  way  from  the  United 
States  to  see  it  There  is  no  mistaking  it  Nowhere  in  all  the 
world  have  my  eyes  beheld  anything  like  it  A  little  to  the  right 
of  the  hill  I  have  been  ascending,  and  a  little  beyond  its  apex,  the 
regal  fowls  looking  down  upon  it  so  knowingly,  it  stands  out  clear 
and  sharp  against  the  mountains  beyond ;  its  grand  sepulchral  stone 
crowning  the  structure  with  a  massiveness  proportioned  to  the  whole. 
At  last  I  see  the  burial-place  of  the  great  Huram,  who  was  ever  a 
lover  of  David  (1  Kings  v.  1),  and  who  rejoiced  greatly  when  he 
heard  the  words  of  Solomon,  and  who  wrote  generously  in  acknowl- 
edgment of  the  royal  missive  announcing  Solomon's  intention  to 
build  an  house  unto  the  name  of  the  Lord  his  God :  "  Because  the 
Lord  hath  loved  his  people,  he  hath  made  thee  king  over  them. 
Blessed  be  the  Lord  God  of  Israel  that  made  the  Heaven  and  the 
earth,  who  hath  given  to  David  the  king  a  wise  son,  endued  with 
prudence  and  understanding,  that  might  build  an  house  for  the 
Lord,  and  an  house  for  his  kingdom"  (2  Chronicles  ii.  11,  12).  Here 
lies  the  Master  of  the  Widow's  Son,  whose  tragic  history  seasons 
every  instruction  of  the  Freemason's  lodge. 

Riding  more  slowly  towards  the  resting-place  of  "  this  friend  of 
Solomon,"  my  legionary  birds  drawing  still  nearer  to  me,  I  love  to 
think  that  the  Phoenician  monarch  selected  his  burial-spot  in  his 
own  lifetime,  in,  accordance  with  the  customs  of  his  country ;  that 
the  plan  of  the  structure  itself  was  drawn  by  the  pencil  of  Hiram, 
the  Widow's  Son ;  and  that  the  munificence  of  King  Solomon  bore 
the  expense  of  its  erection.  Thus  our  first  three  Grand  Masters 
were  united  in  this  as  in  other  matters  interesting  to  all  Masons. 

Kabr  Hairan  bears  about  it  unmistakable  marks  of  extreme 
antiquity !  So  says  Dr.  Thomson,  and  so  say  I.  It  is  impossible 
to  disprove  the  local  tradition  which  assigns  this  tomb  to  the  great 
Tynan  King.  So  says  Prof.  H.  B.  Tristam,  and  so  say  I.  Much 
more  will  \xfelt  than  uttered  by  a  Masonic  visitor.  Standing  on  the 
farthest  point  eastward,  from  which  a  clear  view  of  the  sea-coast  is 
obtained,  and  at  a  spot  where  the  brightest  Orient  rays  come  down 
from  the  Lebanon  ranges,  it  is  the  place  of  all  others  for  the  Tomb 


DESCRIPTION   OF   THE   TOMB.  107 

of  Hiram.  The  genus  loci,  the  spirit  of  the  locality,  is  worth  a  hun- 
dred cold  arguments  based  upon  tape-lines  and  parchment  records. 
This  is  the  monument  of  Hiram;  yonder  eagles  know  it,  and  1 
know  it. 

This  remarkable  structure  consists  of  fifteen  stones  arranged  in 
five  layers  of  the  ordinary  hard  cretaceous  limestone,  solid,  firm,  and 
durable,  without  any  marked  lines  of  stratification,  and  inclining 
to  a  crystalline  structure.  As  I  know  very  well  from  having  cut 
into  it  with  my  chisel,  it  is  very  hard,  the  outer  surface  blunting  the 
edge  of  the  chisel  much  like  glass. 

I.  There  is  a  layer  of  stones,  about  fifteen  feet  by  ten,  resting  upon 
a  bed  of  grout  (that  is,  small  pebbles  intermixed  with  mortar)  six  or 
eight  inches  deep.     There  is  only  one  stone  (near  the  northwest 
corner)   belonging  to  this  foundation   exposed;  but  I  take  it  for 
granted  that  this  layer  extends  equally  under  the  whole  monument. 
This  one  stone  is  thirty-four  inches  in  height,  and  four  feet  long. 
No  one  would  haye  supposed  that  this  underground  layer  existed 
but  for  the  fact  of  there  being  a  deep-arched  well  or  cistern  on  the 
north  side  of  the  monument,  in  digging  which  a  part  of  the  sub- 
structure was  exposed,  together  with  the  bed  of  grout  on  which  that 
first  tier  of  stones  rested.    Not  finding  any  accurate  measurements 
of  Hiram's  Tomb  in  the  books,  I  took  them  myself,  and  verified  them 
on  my  second  visit  here. 

II.  The  first  layer  of  the  monument  aboveground  consists  of  four 
stones,  numbered  in  my  plan  A,  B,  C,  D.    This  tier  is  four  feet 
high. 

III.  The  second  tier  consists  of  five  stones.     These  exactly  cover 
the  lower  tier,  breaking  the  joints,  as  will  be  seen  in  the  plan,  in  an 
artistic  manner.     They  are  numbered  in  my  plan  E,  F,  G,  H,  I. 
This  tier  is  two  feet  ten  inches  high. 

IV.  The  third  tier  consists  of  four  stones.     These  extend  in  every 
dii'ection  several  inches  outside  the  tier  below,  forming  a  pleasing 
sort  of  ledge  or  cornice.    These  are  numbered  K,  L,  M,  N,  in  my 
plan.     This  tier  is  two  feet  eleven  inches  high. 

V.  The  fourth   tier  is  monolithal,  consisting  of  one  great  block 
of  stone.    It  is  numbered  0  in  my  plan.     Out  of  the   centre  of 
Ihis,  in  the  top,  was  hewn  a  huge  cavity  for  the  reception  of  the 
corpse.     Elevated  as  this  sarcophagus  is — more  than  ten  feet  from 
the  ground — it  presents  a  majestic  appearance.    I  climbed  up   to 
it  by  the  help  of  an  Arab,  who  mounted  before  me,  gave  me  hia 


108  DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  TOMB. 

hand,  and  by  nature's  own  grip  assisted  me  to  rise,  my  two  eagles 
looking  curiously  down  upon  the  effort.  Walking  round  to  the 
eastern  end  of  it,  upon  the  cornice  already  described,  I  found  that 
the  burial-place  had  been  burst  open  and  was  empty. 

VI.  The_/?//A  tier  aboveground  is  also  monolithal,  making  the  lid 
of  the  sarcophagus.  This  lid  was  made  with  a  tenon  on  the  under 
side,  which  fitted  into  the  cavity  or  coffin  of  the  sarcophagus.  I 
could  not  tell  whether  cement  was  used  in  fastening  down  the  lid,  but 
presume  that  it  was.  The  dead  body  was  reached  by  those  who  rifled 
it  by  going  to  the  top  of  this  lid,  bursting  down  a  large  piece  at  the 
northeast  corner,  then  breaking  out  the  end  of  the  sarcophagus 
immediately  below  it;  so  an  entrance  was  effected.  By  this  hole  I 
looked  immediately  into  the  place  where  once  lay  the  body  of  King 
Hiram,  empty,  no  doubt,  more  than  two  thousand  years.  Afterwards 
I  crept  into  the  coffin  itself,  and  measured  it. 

The  great  stones  of  this  monument  being  considerably  shattered, 
probably  by  earthquakes,  I  found  it  easy  to  procure  pieces  of  them, 
and  did  so  abundantly.  I  cut  the  Square  and  Compass  deeply  on  the 
monument,  on  the  second  tier,  eastern  end,  near  the  northeast  corner. 
My  Arab  servant,  Hassan,  having  seen  me  do  this  at  other  places, 
labors  under  the  impression  that  it  is  my  name,  and  tells  everybody 
BO.  I  also  exposed  my  Masonic  flag  there.  I  sum  up  in  the  follow- 
ing tables  all  my  measurements  of  this  curious  relic  of  antiquity: 

SIZES  OF  THE  FIFTEEN  ASHLARS  IN  KABR  HAIRAN. 

[See  Drawings.] 


FROM 
EAST  TO  WEST. 

FROM 
NORTH  TO  SOUTH. 

HEIGHT. 

First  Tier. 

A 

3ft. 

Oin. 

8 

ft, 

8 

in. 

4 

ft. 

0  in. 

B 

7ft. 

1 

in. 

4 

ft. 

4 

in. 

4 

ft. 

0  in. 

C 

3ft. 

11 

in. 

8 

ft, 

8 

in. 

4 

ft. 

0  in. 

D 

7ft. 

1 

in. 

4 

ft. 

4 

in. 

4 

ft 

0  in. 

Second  Tier. 

E 

5ft. 

0 

in. 

6 

ft. 

0 

in. 

2 

ft. 

10  in. 

F 

6ft. 

4 

in. 

2 

ft 

10 

in. 

2 

ft 

10  in. 

G 

7ft. 

8 

in. 

2 

ft, 

11 

in. 

2 

ft. 

10  in. 

H 

4ft. 

1 

in. 

5 

ft 

9 

in. 

2 

ft. 

10  in. 

I 

4ft. 

g 

in. 

5 

ft 

9 

in. 

2 

ft. 

10  in. 

Third  Tier 

K 

3  ft. 

g 

in. 

9 

ft 

11 

in. 

2 

ft. 

11  in. 

L 

4ft. 

0 

in. 

9 

ft 

11 

in. 

2 

ft, 

11  in. 

DIMENSIONS.  10S 


EAST  TO  WEST. 

NORTH  TO  SOXTTH. 

HKMHT. 

M 

3 

ft. 

9 

in. 

9 

ft. 

11 

in. 

2 

ft. 

11  in. 

N 

3 

ft. 

7 

in. 

9 

ft. 

11 

in. 

2 

ft. 

11  in. 

Sarcophagus.  0    12  ft.  11  in.         7  ft.    8  in.          6  ft    0  in. 
Lid.  P     12  ft.  11  in.        7  ft.    8  in.          3  ft.    6  in. 


DIMENSIONS  OF  THE  RESPECTIVE  TIERS. 


PROM 

FROM 

EAST  TO  WEST. 

NORTH  TO  SOUTH. 

HEIGHT. 

First  Tier. 

14ft.    Oin. 

8  ft.    8  in. 

4ft;.    Oin. 

Second  Tier. 

14ft.    Oin. 

8  ft.    8  in. 

2  ft.  10  in. 

Third  Tier. 

15  ft.    1  in. 

9  ft.  11  in. 

2  ft.  11  in. 

Fourth  Tier. 

12  ft.  11  in. 

7ft.    Sin. 

6  ft    5  in. 

Fifth  Tier. 

12  ft.  11  in. 

7ft.    Sin. 

3  ft.    6  in. 

Total  height 19  ft.    8  in. 

CONDITION  OF  THE  RESPECTIVE  BLOCKS. 

A,  considerable  piece  out  of  the  upper  and  northeast  corner.  B, 
piece  out  of  upper  and  southwest  corner.  0,  piece  out  of  the  upper 
and  southwest  corner,  and  lower  and  northeast  corner.  D,  in  good 
condition.  E,  northeast  and  southwest  corners  much  shattered.  F, 
cracked  through  by  earthquake.  G,  brokefl  at  upper  and  northwest 
corner.  H,  best  condition  of  all.  I,  cracked  by  earthquake.  K, 
very  large  piece  gone  at  north  end  under  side.  L  and  M,  in  good 
condition.  N,  shattered  at  south  end.  0,  broken  open  at  east  end. 
P,  large  piece  burst  off  northeast  corner.  My  chiselling  of  the 
Square  and  Compass  was  done  on  block  E,  on  the  east  face. 

The  coffin  or  cavity  in  the  great  sepulchral  stone  is  in  length  6  ft, 
3  in. ;  width,  1  ft.  10  in. ;  depth,  2  ft.  2  in. 


A  William  Preston,  of  England,  Masonic  Ritualist 

B  William  Hutchinson,  of  England,  Masonic  Moralist 

C  Thaddeus  Mason  Harris,  of  United  States,  Masonic  Moralist. 

D  Thomas  Smith  Webb,  of  United  States,  Masonic  Ritualist 

E  George  Washington. 


11)  MASONIC   PICNIC. 

F  Benjamin  Franklin. 

G  The  Duke  of  Sussex,  long  Grand  Master  of  England. 

H  Pliny  Fisk,  first  (Masonic)  Protestant  Missionary  to  Palestine, 

I  Wellins  Calcott,  of  England,  Masonic  Moralist. 

K  Edward  A.  Guilbert,  of  United  States,  Masonic  Journalist. 

L  John  W.  Simons,  of  United  States,  Masonic  Jurist. 

M  D.  Murray  Lyon,  of  Scotland,  Masonic  Journalist 

N  The  Earl  of  Zetland,  long  Grand  Master  of  England. 

0  The  Illustrious  Dead  of  the  Masonic  Craft. 

P    The  Zealous  Living  "Workers  of  the  Masonic  Craft. 

The  honor  of  these  dedications  has,  I  think,  been  fairly  earned 
by  their  respective  recipients,  as  the  history  of  Freemasonry,  in 
earlier  and  later  times,  abundantly  proves.  The  workmen  them- 
selves are  such  as  the  Royal  Grand  Master  would  have  hailed 
worthy  associates,  and  "  their  works  do  follow  them."  Will  it  not 
bring  many  Masonic  pilgrims  to  this  sacred  locality,  when  there 
may  be  grouped  together  around  the  great  pile  so  many  of  the 
richest  associations  in  our  history? 

1  am  confident  of  having  the  approving  sentiment  of  every  Mason 
of  intelligence  in  adopting  Kabr  Hairan  as  the  best  remaining 
monument  of  the  most  ancient  Masonic  period.    Here,  I  think,  was 
laid  the  body  of  our  Grand  Master,  Hiram,  King  of  Tyre.    The 
resting-place  of  Solomon  is  lost ;  that  of  the  Widow's  Son  (like  that 
of  Moses)  "  no  man  know^h ;"  but  here,  in  these  fifteen  huge  stones,  we 
have  the  burial-place  of  the  Pillar  of  Strength  !    Surely  it  was  good 
for  me  that  I  came  here;  and  I  cannot  but  approve  the  enthusiasm 
of  that  thoroughly  good  Mason,  Brother  E.  T.  Rogers,  Master  (in 
1868)  of  the  Palestine  Lodge,  No.  415,  at  Beyrout,  who  projected, 
years  ago,  a  Masonic  visit  and  pic-nic  to  this  memorable  fane. 

I  lump  together  a  number  of  notes  of  measurements  and  descrip- 
tions made  on  the  spot.  The  accumulations  of  earth  and  debris  from 
the  field  on  the  north  have  been  walled  up  around  the  monument  a 
few  feet  distant,  leaving  an  alley  on  the  three  sides  of  it.  Otherwise 
the  tomb  would  be  concealed  (as  the  great  wall  of  Mount  Moriah  is) 
one-half  its  height.  The  object  of  this  extraordinary  care,  so  differ- 
ent from  what  we  generally  observe  in  this  country,  was  to  preserve 
the  water-cistern  for  use.  This  cistern  is  six  feet  north  of  the  monu- 
ment, and  reached  by  stone  steps  from  the  northwest  corner  of  the 
tomb.  Go  down  eastward  by  four  narrow  steps  to  a  platform,  six  by 


VIEW   FROM   THE   SUMMIT.  Ill 

four  feet ;  contiuuo  eastward  by  four  broad  steps,  six  feet  long ;  then 
turn  northward  and  go  down  five  narrow  steps  to  the  water,  two  feet 
deep.  Arched  entrance  to  the  cistern  is  four  by  ten  feet.  Cistern 
itself  is  nearly  hemispherical  in  shape,  fifteen  feet  from  north  to 
south,  by  ten  feet.  It  is  plastered  with  gravel-stones,  set  in  cement 
and  sherds  of  old  pottery.  Water  cool  and  good,  much  liked  by  the 
villagers  of  Hanaweigh.  No  signs  of  tools  can  be  seen  where  the 
break  was  made  into  the  sepulchre.  The  sides  of  the  coffin  or  cavity 
have  three  notches  on  the  north  side  and  one  on  the  south,  but  none 
overhead.  I  readily  crept  in  there,  through  the  break  made  by  the 
robbers,  perhaps  of  Sennacherib,  B.C.  715,  or  thereabouts.  No  hiero- 
glyphics of  any  kind  are  on  the  monument,  so  far  as  I  could  dis- 
cover. From  the  top  of  the  monument  there  is  a  fine  view  of  Tyre, 
the  plain  of  Phoenicia  almost  to  Sidon,  and  the  Great  Sea  beyond.  A 
steamer  was  passing  southward,  bound  for  Egypt,  and  quite  a  num- 
ber of  sail-vessels.  Lizards  abound  in  the  tomb,  and  Brother  H.  B. 
Tristam  (in  Land  of  Israel)  killed  a  large  adder  that  lay  asleep, 
with  its  head  exposed,  at  the  joinings  of  the  tiers.  But  I  saw  no 
snakes  around  here.  Hyssop  grows  abundantly  in  the  cracks,  and 
makes  quite  a  green  and  tufted  appearance  for  old  Hiram. 

Kabr  Hairan  is  usually  described  as  standing  due  east  and  west, 
but  by  the  aid  of  the  compass  furnished  me  by  my  old  friend,  Brother 
Edward  Jewell,  of  Louisville,  Ky.,  I  conclude,  either  that  the  varia- 
tion here  is  fifteen  or  twenty  degrees  from  the  true  meridian,  or  that 
the  monument  is  not  oriented  to  face  the  four  points  of  the  com- 
pass. 

While  taking  measurements  and  making  notes,  an  old  man,  head 
of  a  party  of  camel-drivers,  stopped  and  looking  on  for  a  few  minutes, 
asked,  through  my  servant,  "  what  for  all  my  writing  ?  "  I  told  him 
I  had  come  six  thousand  miles  over  yonder  blue  sea,  pointing  to  the 
Mediterranean,  which  stretched  out  majestically  at  our  feet,  and  that 
when  I  return  home  I  shall  tell  my  friends  all  about  the  great  and 
curious  Kabr  Hairan.  This  pleased  him,  and  he  cried  out,  with  the 
accompanying  gesticulation,  "  Tyeeb,  TyeeV  (good),  and  went  on  his 
way  to  tell  his  companions  of  the  Melican  Howadji  who  had  come  so 
far  over  the  sea  to  look  at  Kabr  Hairan. 

In  the  hot  hour,  at  high  twelve,  I  sat  in  the  shadow  of  the  tomb 
and  wrote  these  lines  : 


U2  POEM   AT  HIGH  XIL 

KABR  HAIRAN. 

(Written  April  15th,  1868,  at  the  Tomb  of  Hiram.) 

Eastward  from  Tyre,  where  the  sun 

First  gleams  above  gray  Hermon's  side, 
They  brought  thee,  when  thy  work  was  done. 

And  laid  thee  here  in  royal  pride : 
They  brought  thee  with  the  noblest  rites 

The  wisest  of  our  Craft  enjoined ;  (1) 
Before  thee  soared  the  mountain  heights, 

And  thy  loved  ocean-isle  behind. 

The  Cedars  bowed  their  kingly  tops 

As  Hiram,  Chief  of  Masons,  passed:  (2) 
O'er  Lebanon's  all-snowy  slopes 

The  eagle  screamed  upon  the  blast :  (3) 
Westward  the  foaming  sea  was  crowned 

With  snow-white  sails  returning  home : 
Their  Sea-Queen  (4)  glorious  they  found, 

Where  thou,  their  King,  should  no  more  come. 

Where  in  thy  lifetime  thou  hadst  reared 
This  Tomb,  befitting  one  so  great,  (5) 

They  bore  thee,  Monarch  loved  and  feared, 
And  ^id  thee  in  thy  bed  of  state  :  (6) 

(1)  See  note  10  for  an  explanation  of  this.     King  Hiram  was  traditionally  buried 
with  the  Masonic  Honors,  as  prepared  by  the  pen  of  King  Solomon. 

(2)  Formerly  all  these  offshoots  and  spurs  of  the  Lebanon  Mountains  were  probably 
covered  with  cedars,  though  now  the  nearest  grove  of  which  I  have  any  knowledge  is 
thirty  or  forty  miles  north  of  Hiram's  Tomb. 

(3)  As  I  write  these  lines,  two  of  those  noble  birds  are  soaring  in  the  clear  sky  above 
me. 

(4)  For  many  centuries  the  City  of  Tyre  was  the  commercial  metropolis  of  the  world. 
The  title  "  Sea-Queen  "  is  therefore  highly  appropriate. 

(5)  It  was  the  custom  of  the  princes  and  rulers  of  Phoenicia  to  prepare  for  them- 
•elTes  great  and  costly  sepulchres,  even  while  living  ;  the  hills  around  KABR  HAIRAS 
are  full  of  these,  but  all  shattered  and  empty. 

(6)  To  comprehend  the  splendor  of  Hiram's  burial  procession,  read  that  of  Alexan 
ier  the  Great,  as  detailed  in  Rollin's  Ancient  History. 


POEM  AT  HIGH   XII.  113 

They  closed  thee  in  with  cunning  art 

And.  left  thee  to  thy  well-earned  fame: 
'Twas  all  the  living  can  impart, — 

A  tomb,  a  pageant,  and  a  name. 

Loud  was  the  wail  on  Zidon's  hill, — 

Her  Sages  mourned  thee  as  their  own :  (7) 
Loud  the  lament  on  far  Jebale 

Her  wisest  Son  of  Light  was  gone:  (8) 
The  ships  of  Tyre  bore  the  word 

On  every  wind  across  the  main, 
And  white-robed  craftsmen  wept  their  lord 

And  strewed  the  mystic  leaves  again.  (9) 

Nor  these  alone ; — on  Zion  too 

A  Brother  joins  his  tears  with  theirs : 
King  Solomon,  to  friendship  true, 

The  grief  of  Tyre  fitly  shares : 
His  matchless  pen  such  words  indites 

Of  true  report  and  sacred  woe, 
That  to  this  hour,  Freemasons'  rites 

Within  his  wise  direction  go.  (10) 

i 

The  centuries  wore  apace ;  and  changed 

The  kingdom  of  each  royal  Sire : 
Ephraim  from  Judah  was  estranged, 

And  Zidon  separate  from  Tyre:  (11) 


(7)  At  the  period  of  Hiram's  reign,  the  city  of  Zidon,  which  lies  about  twenty-fire 
miles  north,  of  Tyre,  was  under  his  rule. 

(8)  Jebale  (styled  in  the  Scriptures  Gebal)  is  about  seventy-five  miles  north  of  Tyre, 
and  once  marked  the  boundary  of  Hiram's  possessions.     It  was  the  seat  of  the  Archi- 
tectural and  Philosophical  Schools  of  early  ages. 

(9)  The  various  cojonies  of  Tyre  were  established  at  all  the  prominent  points  on  the 
Mediterranean  Sea. 

(10)  According  to  Masonic  tradition,  the  funeral  rites  under  which  King  Hiram  was 
Duried  were  composed  by  King  Solomon  :  they  were  substantially  the  same  as  those  in 
use  at  the  present  day. 

(11)  It  was  but  a  few  years  after  Hiram's  death  that  his  own  kingdom,  AS  well  a* 
.hat  of  his  royal  friend  Solomon,  was  rent  in  twain  by  internal  convulsions. 


114 


POEM  AT  HIGH   XII. 


Then  swept  the  deluge  over  all ; 

The  Conqueror  came  with  sword  aiid  flame, 
And  templed  shriue  and  kingly  hall 

Are  but  the  shadow  of  a  name.  (12) 

Yet  here  thy  burial-place  is  kept, — 

Still  this  MEMORIAL  appears, 
Though  shadows  of  old  time  have  crept 

Along  these  stones  three  thousand  years. 
The  frost  and  rain  have  gently  seared ; 

The  Orient-sun  hath  kindly  blest: 
And  earthquakes  shattering  have  spared 

Our  Kabr  Hairan,  Hiram's  rest. 

Still  warm  thine  eastern  front  the  rays 

That  call  the  Craftsmen  to  the  wall : 
Here  let  me  chisel  this  device, 

The  oldest,  holiest  of  all !  (13) 
And  as  the  western  sun  goes  down 

To  give  the  wearied  Craft  release, 
His  latest  gleam,  in  smile  or  frown, 

These  time-stained  ashlars  still  doth  kiss. 

The  lizard  darts  within  thy  walls, 

The  Arab  stalks  indifferent  by, 
Vast  relics  once  of  lordly  halls 

Around  in  mute  suggestion  lie : 
The  hyssop  springs  between  the  stones, 

The  daisy  blossoms  at  the  foot, 
The  olive  its  peace-lessons  owns, 

Best  moral  where  all  else  is  mute. 

Stand  thou,  till  time  shall  be  no  more, 

Great  type  of  Masonry  divine! 
From  eastern  height,  from  western  shore, 

Let  Craftsmen  seek  this  ancient  shrine  • 

\f2)  Referring  to  the  Chaldean  monarch  Nebuchadnezzar,  who  conquered  the  king- 
doms of  Phoenicia,  Israel,  and  Judah,  about  four  hundred  years  after  Hiram's  death. 
(1*1  I  chiselled  the  Square  and  Compass  deeply  on  the  tomb  near  the  northerns 


THE   EAGLES   OF   LEBANON.  115 

And  from  each  pilgrim  this  be  heard, 

As  from  one  humble  voice  to-day : 
"  Honor  to  Hiram, — Masons'  lord, 

"  Honor  and  gratitude  we  pay ! " 

Sitting  on  the  north  side  of  this  old  structure,  "  the  place  of  dark- 
ntss"  and  what  is  better  just  now,  of  coolness,  my  eye  is  again  attract- 
ed by  that  pair  of  mountain  eagles  who  started  across  the  isthmus 
of  Tyre  with  me  this  morning,  and  have  been  watching  me  with  un- 
wearying patience,  while  I  examined  olive-presses,  collected  mosaic  tes- 
sercB,  culled  anemones  and  poppies,  and  browsed  generally  along  the 
way.  Grand  old  fellows !  how  they  hang  up  there  in  the  sky  on 
their  broad  wings,  extended  sail-like  six  or  eight  feet  horizontally ! 
Whatever  their  intentions  in  thus  following  me,  their  patience  is 
most  praiseworthy ;  and  I  feel  it  to  be  a  good  omen  that  King  Hi- 
ram's Lebanon  has  sent  down  two  of  its  aquilce  aurce,  its  gold- 
en eagles,  to  guard  my  way  by  old  Hiram's  sarcophagus.  And 
now  is  my  best  time  to  embody  Scriptural  references  to  the  Eagle 
in  these  pages.  Come,  ye  inspired  prophets,  around  me,  and  let  us 
study  the  Bird  of  Jove  together.  Eoman  cohorts  and  Roman  le- 
gions have  often  enough  displayed  their  eagles  along  this  rocky  road, 
running  eastward  from  Tyre,  and  the  Germans,  a  thousand  years 
later,  exhibited  theirs,  the  double-headed  one,  as  they  came  down  from 
Antioch,  A.D.  1099,  to  the  capture  of  Jerusalem.  But  what  use  did 
you  prophets  make  of  the  eagle  when  "  inquiring  and  searching  dili- 
gently, and  prophesying  of  the  grace  that  should  come "  to  fallen 
men? 

Who  of  you  all  have' made  the  "unclean  bird"  (Lev.  xi.  18)  your 
emblem  ? 

Moses :  I  used  it  in  threatenings  against  my  people,  in  case  they 
should  refuse  to  hearken  unto  the  voice  of  the  LORD  their  God.  Ob- 
serving its  swiftness  of  flight,  I  declared  that  the  nation  whom  God 
should  send  against  Israel,  from  the  end  of  the  earth,  should  come 
"  as  swift  as  the  eagle  flieth."  (Deut.  xxviii.  49.) 

Habakkuk :  I  took  up  the  figure  of  Moses  885  years  afterward, 
and  compared  that  bitter  and  hasty  nation,  the  Chaldeans,  to  yonder 
bird,  saying,  "  they  shall  fly  (against  Israel)  as  the  eagle  hasteth  to 
eat."  (i.  8.)  This  prophet  had  doubtless  seen  the  swoop  by  which 
the  eagle  descends  upon  its  prey,  so  graphically  described  by  W.  M, 
Thomson  •  *  They  poise  themselves  for  a  moment,  then,  like  a  bolt 


116 


IHE   EAGLES   OF   LEBANON. 


from  the  clear  sky,  down  they  come,  head  foremost,  with  wings 
collapsed,"  and  snatch  the  defenceless  lamb  from  under  the  very 
eye  of  the  shepherd. 

Jertmiah :  I  denounced  the  pride  and  self-confidence  of  the  Edom- 
ites  at  Mt  Seir,  and  declared  that,  though  they  should  make  their  nest 
on  high,  as  the  eagle  that  has  established  his  eyrie  in  yonder  inaccessi- 
ble crag  of  Lebanon,  yet  the  Lord  will  bring  him  down.  (xlix.  16.) 

David:  I  sung  of  God's  bounty,  declaring  that  he  renews  the 
youth  of  his  saints  as  the  moulting  eagle  renews  his  glorious  pinions. 
(Ps.  ciii.  5.) 

Moses:  In  promising  the  tender  mercies  of  God  to  an  obedient 
race,  I  reminded  them  of  the  eagle's  care  for  her  young :  "As  an  eagle 
stirreth  up  her  nest,  fluttereth  over  her  young,  spreadeth  abroad  her 
wings,  taketh  them,  beareth  them  on  her  wings,  so  the  Lord  alone 
did  lead  him."  (Deut  xxxii.  11.) 


EAGLE    AXD    PREY. 


The  voice  of  Jehovah,  showing  his  almighty  power  to  Job,  conde- 
cends  to  introduce  this  bird  into  the  lesson,  in  these  grand  words  • 


EARTHQUAKE   OF    1837.  117 

"Doth  the  eagle  mount  up  at  thy  command,  and  make  her  nest  on 
high  ?  She  dwelleth  and  abideth  on  the  rock,  upon  the  crag  of  the 
rock,  and  the  strong  place.  From  thence  she  seeketh  the  prey,  and 
her  eyes  behold  afar  off.  Her  young  ones  also  suck  up  blood,  and 
where  the  slain  are,  there  is  she."  (Job  xxxix.  27.) 

But  my  hour  is  exhausted,  and  I  must  to  my  measurements,  al- 
though my  Scriptural  references  to  the  eagle  are  not  half  exhausted. 
I  have  left  out  "  mounting  up  on  wings  as  eagles  "  (Is.  xl.  31),  and  a 
score  of  passages.  I  imagine  the  imperial  bird  descending  from 
these  heights  upon  the  sceptre  in  the  left  hand  of  the  statue  of  Ju- 
piter Olympus,  on  the  Acropolis,  far  in  the  northwest 

And  I  must  not  forget  what  Mrs.  Ellet  says : 

11  Imperial  wanderer  !  the  storms  that  shake 
Earth's  towers,  and  bid  her  rooted  mountains  quake, 
Are  never  felt  by  thee  I " 

Could  I  question  the  mighty  bird,  it  would  be  an  interesting  in- 
quiry with  what  sentiments  he  viewed  the  dreadful  earthquake  thai 
racked  all  this  country,  on  New  Year's  day,  1837 ;  when  Safed  was 
shaken  together  as  a  heap ;  when  El  Jish  was  totally  destroyed ;  Ti- 
berias cracked  and  shattered ;  and  the  death-cries  of  three  thousand 
souls  went  up  to  heaven  from  yonder  eastern  range ;  when  every 
hand  was  faint  and  every  heart  melted,  and  pangs  and  sorrows  took 
hold  of  them,  and  they  were  amazed  one  at  another  (Isaiah  xiii.  8) ; 
when  the  earth  reeled  to  and  fro  as  a  drunkard,  and  was  removed 
like  a  cottage  (xxiv.  20) ;  when  the  great  house  was  smitten  with 
breaches  and  the  little  house  with  clefts  (Joel  vi.  11).  A  number  of 
our  American  lodges  are  named  Eagle  Lodge. 

To  compare  my  measurements  and  descriptions  with  those  of  other 
writers,  I  have  looked  up  Van  der  Velde's,  and  copy  what  he  says : 
"  Hiram's  tomb  stands  on  an  oblong,  four-sided  pedestal,  of  two  lay- 
ers of  huge  stones,  14  feet  long,  8  feet  9  inches  broad,  6  feet  high. 
The  third  layer  is  15  feet  long,  10  broad,  3  feet  9  inches  high. 
Above  this  is  a  truncated  pyramid,  hewn  out  of  a  single  rock,  12 
feet  1  inch  long,  8  feet  6  inches  wide,  6  feet  high.  This  is  surmount- 
ed by  an  oblong  stone  of  the  same  dimensions,  5  feet  high.  The 
entire  ton\b  is  about  21  feet  high.  There  is  nothing  to  prevent  pas- 
eengers  from  approaching  the  monument,  no  peculiar  sanctity  being 
ascribed  to  it,  as  in  the  numerous  welies  (tombs)  of  the  Moslems." 
Van  der  Velde  admits  the  tradition  that  claims  this  as  the  monu- 


Ug  PAGES  FROM  MY   DIARY. 

ment  of  Hiram,  Solomon's  friend  and  ally,  and  thinks  the  popular 
belief  well  founded  No  heathen  king,  he  says,  was  ever  in  such 
close  relationship  with  Israel  as  the  King  of  Tyre,  and  nowhere  else 
in  this  country,  except  at  Jerusalem,  is  there  so  large  a  monument 
as  this,  or  one  so  appropriate  to  such  a  king.  He  sees  in  this  remem- 
brance of  Tyre's  great  monarch,  thus  visibly  preserved  in  this  monu- 
ment, a  confirmation  of  the  Lord's  words,  in  1  Sam.  xi.  30,  "Them 
that  honor  me,  I  will  honor." 

Brother  Capt  Charles  Warren,  so  long  in  charge  of  the  Jerusalem 
Explorations,  makes  a  note  of  Hiram's  Tomb,  under  date  July,  1869, 
as  follows :  "  We  passed  out  of  our  way  to  visit  Hiram's  Tomb,  as  I 
was  anxious  to  see  if  there  were  any  masons'  marks  on  the  stone.  1 
could  only  see  two, — one  is  a  Christian  Cross,  of  the  Byzantine  type, 
at  the  western  end ;  it  appears  to  be  ancient.  The  other  consists  oi 
a  square  and  compass,  very  recently  cut."  As  I  saw  nothing  of  thi? 
"  Christian  Cross,"  I  fancy  it  must  have  been  put  there  since  May, 
1868. 

Some  sort  of  a  fair,  I  think,  was  going  on  at  Tyre  the  day  I  first 
ri?iu-d  Kabr  Hairan,  something  like  the  one  at  Bint  Jebale,  which 
I  shall  describe  in  another  chapter,  and  the  number  and  variety  of 
travellers  was  no  doubt  beyond  the  ordinary.  I  took  down  a  score 
or  two  of  notes,  sitting  in  my  stocking-feet  on  the  cornice  at  the  east 
end  of  the  monument,  and  here  are  specimens  of  them : 

A  party  of  Arab  charcoal-dealers,  all  mounted  on  camels,  eighteen 
in  all.  As  the  wind  blew  in  their  faces  they  had  all  turned  them- 
selves to  the  rear,  except  the  leader,  and  so  avoided  the  draft.  These 
Arab  saddles  are  just  like  a  sawhorse,  an  old-fashioned  X,  on  which 
you  can  face  either  way,  and  suffer,  I  should  think,  excruciating  pain, 
no  matter  which  way  you  sit.  I  was  never  on  a  camel  in  my  life, 
but  I  have  sat  for  ten  minutes  at  a  time  on  a  sharp-edged  fence-rail, 
and  I  remember  it  The  sheikh  of  the  little  village  has  come  over 
to  ask  Hassan  what  I  am  doing  up  there.  I  told  Hassan  (sarcas- 
tically) to  say  that  I  had  bought  this  tomb  from  the  Pasha,  and  was 
going  to  ship  it  to  America,  but  he  evidently  told  him  something 
else.  The  sheikh  is  a  short  man,  with  the  darkest  shade  of  bronze  ; 
eyes  keen,  roving,  and  unsettled ;  teeth  .white ;  skin  so  dried  and  with- 
ered it  seems  cleavingfrom  the  bones.  Here  passes  a  man  in,  or  just 
out  of,  an  ague  fit  How  well  I  know  how  he  feels.  He  may  say  as 
the  prophet  of  Anathoth  did:  All  my  bones  shake;  I  am*  like  a 
drunken  man,  a  man  whom  wine  ovefcometh  (Jer.  xxiii.  9).  And 
the  word  wine  reminds  me  to  offer  him  some  arrack  from  my  leatner 
bottle.  But  he  loathes  it  and  (I  judge  by  the  sound)  curses  me 
inwardly  (Ps.  Ixii.  4).  Truth  is,  all  Moslems  are  Rechabites  (Jer. 


PAGES   FEOM   MY  DIARY.  119 

xxxv.  2).  Some  cows  pass  by  from  the  pastures  of  Kanah,  just  over 
the  hill  yonder.  One  is  what  Jeremiah  calls  (xl.  20)  a  very  fair 
heifer.  Some  are  fat  as  heifers  at  grass,  and  bellow  as  bulls  ( Jer.  L 
11).  The  long  line  of  telegraph  poles  between  me  and  Tyre  yonder, 
suggests  how  differently  certain  passages  of  Scripture  would  read  had 
Morse  only  appeared  3,000  years  sooner.  Jonah  need  never  have 
gone  personally  to  Nineveh  ;  Joseph  need  not  have  come  to  Palestine 
before  finding  that  Archelaus  did  reign  in  place  of  his  father  Herod ; 
the  movements  of  invading  armies  would  have  been  telegraphed, 
and  time  given  the  natives  to  prepare  for  defence ;  and  so  all  through 
the  sacred  pages.  And  here,  on  a  certain  day  blessed  in  all  the 
history  of  this  country,  if  the  miserable  people  only  knew  it,  there 
passed  one  who,  though  rich,  yet  for  our  sakes  became  poor.  On  his 
way  to  Sarepta,  as  I  will  show  in  a  coming  chapter,  Jesus  and  his 
disciples  passed  this  monument,  doubtless  looking  up  to  it  and  passing 
comments  upon  it,  even  as  travellers  do  now'.  It  is  easy  to  recognize 
a  Christian  village,  both  by  the  unveiled  faces  and  black,  sparkling 
eyes  of  the  females,  and  the  neater  houses  and  cleaner  streets.  How 
truly  that  city  of  Tyre,  five  miles  yonder  in  the  west,  was  said  to 
have  been  planted  in  a  pleasant  place !  (Hos.  ix.  13.)  A  sheikh 
is  passing  by,  gorgeously  apparelled,  as  trie  Scripture  expresses  it, 
and  doubtless  as  "  full  of  all  subtlety  "  (Acts  xiii.  10)  as  his  progen- 
itor in  the  days  of  Peter.  The  purity  of  the  atmosphere  and  gentle 
freshness  of  the  air,  as  it  comes  down  from  the  hills  in  the  east,  high, 
broken,  and  rugged,  makes  everything  delightful  up  here.  That  old 
camel-sheikh,  with  his  eye  like  a  hawk's,  can  see  ten  miles  off.  But 
he  cannot  reverse  the. telescope;  the  pencil-marks  on  my  note-book 
are  invisible  to  him ;  the  copy  of  my  Arabic  newspaper,  El  Hadekhat, 
is  a  sheet  of  white  paper.  A  chap  climbed  up  side  of  me  for  purposes 
of  instruction.  He  told  me  a  great  deal ;  and  when  I  had  paid  him 
for  his  information  and  dismissed  him  with  thanks,  he  remembered 
a  great  deal  more  and  came  back  again.  Like  the  eccentric  Wors. 
Master,  L.  0.  B., — who,  having  told  the  candidate  "  all  he  knew"  and 
closed  the  lodge,  summoned  them  together  again  "  in  called  commu- 
nication "  a  few  minutes  afterwards,  explaining  that  he  had  just  then 
remembered  something  else,  and  was  afraid  he  would  forget  it  if  not 
promptly  disbursed !  As  the  body  of  King  Cheops  is  probably  rest- 
ing, not  in  the  King's  Chamber,  nor  Queen's  Chamber,  nor  Chamber 
of  Projection  (subterranean),  but  in  a  vault  far  below  the  last,  so  I 
suggested  the  theory  to  Capt.  Warren  that  the  body  of  the  great 
Hiram  was  never  laid  in  this  sarcophagus,  but  underneath,  perhaps 
far  underneath,  and  when  the  time  for  great  explorations  in  this 
locality  arrives,  it  may  be  found  there.  To  bring  to  light  the  remains 
of  Abraham  from  Hebron,  David  and  Solomon  from  Sion,  Hiram 
from  this  hill,  and  Cheops  from  that  subterranean  chamber  "  forever 
flowed  about  by  water,"  are  among  the  works  reserved  for  Masonic 
explorers.  An  ungainly,  wabbling  creature,  with  a  withered  hand,  as 
in  the  story  of  the  miracle  at  Capernaum.  The  next  is  a  party  of 


120  PAGES   FROM    MY   DIARY. 

Swedes,  judging  from  dress,  eyes,  and  hair.  One  of  them  recalls  the 
portrait  of  Gustavus  Adolphus,  tall,  vigorous,  graceful,  yellow  hair 
flowing  thick  and  plentiful,  expression  mild,  manners  singularly 
engaging.  I  was  sorry  he  knew  so  little  English,  for  what  little  he 
dia  Know  did  him  good.  Now  come  two  men  with  silver  beards, 
walking  staff  in  hand,  who  do  not  even  deign  me  a  nod.  The  next 
is  a  grave,  patient-looking  Kabbi,  whose  philosophy  is  good  enough 
for  Socrates.  Replying  to  my  remark,  that  the  oppression  the  Jews 
had  received  from  the  world  would  naturally  sour  them  against  their 
tyrants,  he  said,  "  Hakeem,  but  it  is  noble  and  god-like  to  bear  with 
calmness  and  observe  with  pity  the  failings  of  others."  "Whereupon 
I  (figuratively)  gave  him  my  hat.  Next  there  comes  a  fine,  comely 
girl,  in  the  beautiful  costume  of  the  Lebanons,  with  bracelets  round 
her  arms  and  ankles.  The  trees  that  I  observed  this  morning  are  the 
olive,  palm,  orange,  lemon,  cypress,  oleander,  tamarisk,  etc.;  the 
flowers  (as  I  gather  the  class-names  from  other  authors),  Ranun- 
culus myriophyllus,  Draba  verna,  Reseda  suffruticosa,  Zizyphus 
vulyaris,  Senecio  vernalis,  Anchusa  italica,  Parietaria  officinalis, 
and  the  like.  The  little  Scops  owl,  called  here  Maroof,  stares 
at  me  from  an  olive-tree  close  by,  in  his  own  inquisitive  style;  and 
the  lazy  people,  by  a  stare  equally  persistent,  but  not  half  so  wise, 
prove  that,  however  they  may  value  money,  they  have  no  real  appre- 
ciation of  that  which  money  only  represents — time.  And  now  a 
whole  party,  of  divers  ages  and  sexes,  gather  on  the  bank  in  front, 
almost  level  with  my  face,  and  take  a  long  stare  at  me.  Klau- 
ber  can't  make  a  photograph  of  me  half  so  accurate  as  they  will. 
The  old  man,  with  "  childish  treble,"  leads  off  in  the  hated  dissyllable 
backsheesh.  He  is  followed  in  coarser  tones  by  another  and  another 
of  the  crowd,  until  every  gullet  is  croaking  with  that  abhorrent 
password  of  beggary.  In  this  vicinity  this  morning,  looking  up  the 
almost  illegible  carvings  on  old  stones,  I  stirred  up  a  number  of 
partridges,  larger  than  ours  at  home,  and  of  different  color.  Their 
beaks  and  feet  are  red,  and  plumes  ashy  gray,  like  the  color  of 
the  dust  The  country  around  is  rocky  and  impracticable,  and  much 
overgrown  with  thorn.  The  caravans  that  go  by  kick  up  a  dreadful 
dust  The  dust  of  these  roads,  powdering  the  face,  irritating  the 
eyes,  and  leaving  a  taste  of  hyd.  cum  creta  in  the  mouth,  recalls  a  host 
of  Scripture  passages,  showing  that  Holy  Land  was  always  Dusty  Land. 
That  we  were  made  of  "  dust, "  according  to  the  expression  (Genesis 

7),  "  And  the  Lord  God  formed  man  of  the  dust  of  the  ground," 

and  other  passages,  seems  plain  enough  this  morning,  and  that  "  unto 

all  the  generations  of  this  country  have,  literally,  returned, 

perhaps  explains  the  peculiarly  acrid  and  unpleasant  flavor  to  which 

sferred.    Jesus  told  his  disciples  to  shake  the  dust  off  their 

t  at  the  doors  of  inhospitable  men  as  a  testimony  against  them. 

may  be  that  explains  the  dust-heaps  I  have  seen  at  so   many 

thresholds!     In    the  fourteenth    century  the  English  government 

instituted  a  court  styled  The  Court  of  Dusty  Feet  (pie-poudre),  to 


THE   CHUKCH    BELL.  121 

be  held  at  markets,  to  settle  difficulties  between  buyers  and  sellers 
on  the  spot.  I  should  think  Easchid  Pasha  might  introduce  it  here 
with  equal  regularity  and  propriety.  A  fakir,  or  native  beggar- 
priest,  of  the  class  that  subsists  on  charity.  A  wild-looking  man, 
naked  to  the  waist,  having  in  fact  no  clothing  save  a  sheepskin  tied 
around  his  hips,  long,  matted  hair,  shading  a  wild,  haggard  face ;  he  is, 
in  all  the  uses  of  the  word,  a  grim  fanatic.  Who  is  it  wrote  these 
lines,  that  occur  to  me  in  my  survey  of  old  Kabr  Hairan  ? 

As  if  time  had  been  to  it  all  sunlight  and  soft  dew, 
As  if  upon  its  freshness  the  cold  rime 
Of  decay  should  never  fall. 

Gathering  up  my  effects  at  4  P.M.,  I  started  to  return  to  Tyre,  taking 
upon  my  way  the  celebrated  fountains  called  Ras-el-Ain,  or  "  Head 
of  the  Spring,"  four  miles  from  Tyre,  and  said,  in  the  native  tradi- 
tions, to  have  been  erected  at  the  expense  of  King  Solomon,  as  a 
present  to  his  royal  friend  Hiram.  These  fountains  afe  the  finest 
I  saw  in  Syria.  Originally  there  was  a  large  spring  broke  out  here. 
This  was  inclosed  by  immense  stone  walls  until  the  water  rose  about 
twenty  feet,  in  one  great  reservoir,  from  which  it  was  carried  off  by 
aqueducts  towards  the  city.  This  abundance  of  sweet  water  makes 
everything  around  a  mass  of  vegetation,  recalling  the  beautiful  ex- 
pression, "  Whereupon  there  grow  roses  and  lilies,  flowers  of  unchange- 
able color,  from  which  are  emitted  odors  of  wonderful  smell." 
(2  Esdras  vi.  44.) 

At  the  top  of  this  fountain,  I  was  accosted  by  one  of  the  officers 
of  the  Protestant  Church  at  Kanah,  six  miles  east,  with  a  subscrip- 
tion paper,  asking  aid  towards  purchasing  a  church-bell.  I  was  glad 
to  give  my  mejeedia  (ninety-four  cents)  to  this  desirable  end,  and  I 
hope  the  echoes  of  Lebanon  have,  ere  this,  been  stirred  by  the  sug- 
gestive sound.  It  is  but  a  late  thing  that  the  Turkish  government  has 
permitted  the  use  of  bells  in  churches ;  a  timber  of  heavy,  porous 
wood,  struck  with  a  setting-maul,  having  heretofore  answered  the  pur- 
pose of  a  bell  in  calling  God's  people  together.  In  all  Asia  Minor 
there  is  only  one  Christian  church  supplied  with  a  bell,  viz.,  the  old 
city  of  Philadelphia.  The  Turks  themselves  employ  men  with  loud 
voices,  styled  muezzins,  who  station  themselves  in  the  minarets 
(steeples)  of  the  mosques  and  roar  out  the  holy  news  with  incredible 
force.  The  last  association,  therefore,  connected  in  my  mind  with 
these  abounding  waters  of  Ras-el-Ain,  is  the  presenting  that  man 
with  a  Turkish  dollar  for  the  purpose  of  buying  that  church-bell  at 
K.anah.  And  so  I  quietly  go  back  to  Tyre,  to  dinner  and  to  bed. 


1ft 


3d. 


K 

L 

i 

M               N 

i 

4th. 


5th. 


;••*; 


DIVISION  THIRD -GEBAL. 


Loud  wind,  strong  wind,  blowing  Irom  the  mountains, 
Fresh  wind,  free  wind,  sweeping  o'er  the  sea, 
Pour  forth  thy  vials  like  torrents  from  air-fountains, 
Draughts  of  life  to  me. 

A  field  of  ruins,  a  scene  of  unutterable  desolation. 

Thorns  coming  up  in  her  palaces,  nettles  and  brambles  in  the  fortresses  theie- 
of,  a  habitation  of  dragons  and  a  court  of  owls. 

There  is  a  tongue  in  every  rock,  a  voice  from  every  leaf,  which  witnesses,  to  all 
who  visit  here,  of  the  eternal  truth  and  majesty  of  Him  who  is  working  here 
the  melancholy  penalty  of  sin,  in  the  sorrow  and  degradation  which  surround 
aim. 

Sacred  land  by  blood  and  tears  of  God, 
Instinct  with  thrills  of  consecrated  life. 

The  quaint,  enamelled  eyes 

That  on  the  green  turf  suck  the  honeyed  showers, 
The  ground  all  purpled  with  the  vernal  flowers  : 
These  bells  and  flowerets  of  a  thousand  hues. 

Here  rest  the  great  and  good  ;  here  they  repose, 
After  their  generous  toil ;  a  sacred  band, 
They  take  their  sleep  together,  while  the  year 
Comes  with  its  early  flowers  to  deck  their  graves, 
And  gather  them  again  as  winter  frowns  ; 
Theirs  is  no  vulgar  sepulchre  ;  green  sods 
Are  all  their  monument ;  and  yet  it  tells 
A  nobler  history  than  pillared  piles 
Or  the  eternal  pyramids.     They  need 
No  statue  nor  inspiration  to  reveal 
Their  greatness 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

GOING   UP  TO   GEBAL. 

HE  Second  of  the  Seven  Grand  Masonic  Localities  that  my 
visit  to  the  Holy  Land  enables  me  to  identify  and  describe, 
is  Gebal  (pronounced  Jebale,  accent  on  the  last  syllable)- 
I  went  there  from  Beyrout,  a  distance  of  about  twenty-four 
miles,  March  17,  and  remained  three  days,  returning  on 
the  21st  My  expeditionary  force  consisted  of  one  man,  Hassan,  a 
stout,  good-natured  Arab,  described  in  Chapter  V.,  who  knows  con- 
siderable English  of  the  hassanic  quality  (the  joke  here  consists  in 
the  fact  that  the  word  hassan  means  a  horse) ;  one  boy,  Yasoof  (mean- 
ing Joseph,  I  am  told),  two  horses  and  a  donkey  ;  the  latter  (whom  1 
had  named  Boanerges,  because  I  don't  remember  the  singular  form 
of  the  word),  addicted  to  lying  down  without  the  slightest  warning, 
and  to  making  the  most  excruciating  noises  that  organized  nostrils 
ever  projected.  These  three  persons  and  animals  bore  with  them 
all  needful  supplies  of  blankets,  overcoats,  working-tools,  such  as 
chisel,  mallet,  etc.,  and  a  good  quantity  of  provisions  for  my  personal 
use,  for  five  days. 

In  view  of  this  five  days'  trip  I  had  consulted  a  professional  drago- 
man, who  generously  offered  to  convey  me  to  Gebal,  feed,  lodge,  and 
find  me  for  five  days,  and  all  for  the  insignificant  sum  of  $125 ! 
When  I  asked  him  what  sort  of  accommodation  he  could  afford  for 
that  trifling  remuneration,  he  replied  that  he  should  take  nine  horses 
and  mules,  twelve  servants,  a  cook,  three  tents,  one  for  me,  one  for 
himself  and  servants,  and  one  for  the  kitchen,  and  that  my  dinner 
should  consist  of  five  courses.  I  asked  him  if  he  thought  I  had 
come  all  the  way  from  Kentucky  to  eat  dinners  of  five  courses.  The 
conundrum  remains  unanswered  to  this  day. 

This  was  the  third  visit  I  had  made  up  the  coast  from  Beyrout,  as 

AT  as  the  mouth  of  Nahr-el-Kelb  (Dog  River),  a  place  all  travellers 

sit,  to  inspect  the  ancient  inscriptions  on  the  rocks  there.     Tlnse 

•nil  be  fully  described  in  my  account  of  the  Masonic  Bay,  or  Bay  of 


THUNDER-STORM   IN  LEBANON.  127 

the  Rafts,  in  Division  Fourth.  But  I  shall  not  find  so  good  a  place  as 
this  to  describe  a  thunder-storm  in  which  I  was  caught,  the  first  visit 
I  made  to  the  place.  It  was  on  the  5th  of  March,  1868  (the  twenty- 
second  anniversary  of  my  Masonic  Initiation),  and  my  purpose  waa 
to  inspect  those  ancient  proofs  of  human  pride  and  grandeur.  I  had 
scarcely  got  out  of  Beyrout  on  the  sea-shore,  when  the  bay  became 
lashed  into  fury  by  a  gale.  A  tremendous  thunder-storm  swept 
grandly  a  little  way  before,  and  as  I  was  congratulating  myself  on 
escaping  its  fury,  I  was  startled  by  the  roar  of  thunder  in  the  rear. 
Looking  back,  I  saw  myself  pursued  by  one  of  Mount  Lebanon's 
blackest  clouds,  that  bellowed  a  thousand  times  worse  than  Spenser 
makes  the  dragon  bellow  who  was  killed  right  at  this  spot,  if  report 
is  true,  by  St.  George.  I  was  riding  a  donkey  a  trifle  larger  than  the 
conventional  goat  of  the  Masonic 'lodge,  and  my  prospects  of  escap- 
ing a  drenching  and  a  pelting  were  solely  based  on  his  speed.  Capri- 
cornus  did  his  utmost,  and  I  reached  a  native  khan,  or  tavern  (like 
the  one  described  at  Neby  Younas),  and  entered,  thanks  to  my  goat 
and  a  gum-coat,  not  all  wet.  A  dozen  people  with  their  beasts  were 
in  there  before  me,  the  old  khan  proving  to  them,  as  to  me,  a 
place  of  refuge  and  covert  from  storm  and  from  rain  (Isa.  v.  6).  The 
etorm  being  over,  I  went  on  to  the  inscriptions,  a  mile  or  more 
further  north,  and  while  making  notes  there  a  second  cloud  swept 
through  the  passes  of  old  Lebanon  and  poured  its  contents,  true  as 
the  plumb-line,  on  me,  as  I  cowered  under  shelter  of  the  overhanging 
rocks.  This  convulsion  of  nature  was  inconceivably  grand  and 
awful.  I  have  nothing  parallel  to  it  in  all  my  memory.  The  gorge 
through  which  Dog  Eiver  runs  separates  two  mountains,  a  thousand 
feet  in  height,  by  an  interval  of  about  300  feet.  The  sides  of  these 
tremendous  heights  gave  back  the  awful  thunder-peals  in  countless 
reverberations.  The  lightnings  flashed  across  the  defile  with  a 
vividness  blasting  to  the  eyeballs.  I  could  conceive  that  the  spirits 
of  the  mighty  dead  were  revisiting  these  scenes  of  their  earthly 
grandeur,  and  speaking,  as  they  once  addressed  the  world,  in  tempest 
and  fire.  In  these  terrific  passages  of  sound  I  learned  the  propriety 
of  the  Hebrew  name  for  echo,  "  the  daughter  of  the  voice."  I  was  so 
impressed  with  the  unparalleled  sublimity  of  this  scene,  that,  on  my 
return  that  night  to  the  shelter  of  Hallock's  hospitable  (flat)  roof, 
I  was  unable  to  sleep,  but  spent  the  hours  composing  the  folk  wing 
verses,  together  with  music  to  them  : 


128  THE  ROAD  TO  QEBAL. 

THE  GLORY  OF  LEBANON. 

That  goodly  mountain,  Lebanon  (Deut.  iii.  25).  He  maketh  Let> 
anon  to  skip  like  a  calf  (Ps.  xxix.  6).  The  fruit  shall  shake  like 
Lebanon  (Ps.  Ixxii.  16).  The  righteous  shall  grow  like  a  cedar  in 
Lebanon  (Ps.  xcii.  12).  Like  the  smell  of  Lebanon  (Cant.  iv.  11). 
Lebanon  shall  fall  like  a  mighty  one  (Is.  x.  34).  The  glory  of  Leb- 
anon (Is.  xxxv.  2  and  Ix.  13).  The  head  of  Lebanon  (Jer.  xxn.  6j. 
His  smell  as  Lebanon ;  the  wine  of  Lebanon  (Hosea  xiv.  6  and  7). 
The  flower  of  Lebanon  (Nahum  i.  4).  The  violence  of  Lebanon 
(Hab.  ii.  17).  Open  thy  doors,  0  Lebanon  (Zech.  i.  10). 

Oh  charming  Mount !  thy  flowery  sides, 

Thy  heights  with  cedars  crowned, 
Thy  gushing  springs,  and  painted  wings, 

And  birds  of  sweetest  sound ! 
Oh  Lebanon !  oh  roseate  throne, 

The  church  of  God  shall  be, 
In  days  to  come,  a  flowery  home, 

A  roseate  mount  like  thee !  ' , 

Oh  fearful  Mount !  thy  stormy  Crown, 

Thy  echoing  tongues  of  flame, 
Whose  awful  word  proclaims  its  God, 

And  bids  adore  His  name ! 
Oh  Lebanon !  oh  darkened  throne, 

The  church  of  God  shall  be, 
In  days  to  come,  an  anchored  home, 

A  solid  mount  like  thee ! 

Oh  mighty  Mount !  thy  stony  gates, 

Thy  heights  in  walls  secure, 
Thy  dizzy  hills,  and  sheltered  dales, 

And  guardians  tried  and  sure ! 
Oh  Lebanon !  oh  guarded  throne, 

The  church  of  God  shall  be, 
In  days  to  come,  a  castled  home, 

A  forted  mount  like  thee ! 

The  road  to  Gebal  is  fearfully  bad.  You  go  a  few  miles  pain- 
fully through  deep  sand,  strewed  with  boulders,  until  you  look 
longingly  up  the  mountain-slopes  on  your  right,  and  wish  you  were 
ascending  the  steepest  of  them.  Then  you  come  to  a  spur  of 
the  stony  hills,  so  rough  and  difficult  that  the  heaviest  sand- 
banks appear  as  green  meadows  in  the  comparison.  One  of  these 
rocky  passes,  about  six  miles  from  Beyrout,  occurred  to  me  as  a  capi- 
tal place  to  work  the  Royal  Arch  degree !  It  presents  a  regular  sue- 


THE   BROKEN   COLUMN.  129 

cession  ol  difficult  passages,  increasing  in  roughness  every  step,  and 
ending  in  a  frightful  climax,  delicious  to  the  heart  of  a  Principal 
Sojourner.  The  Chapter  room  at  Akron,  Ohio,  reminds  me  of  it. 

Yet  this  is  one  of  the  most  noted  highways  in  the  world.  It  has 
passed  great  men  along  this  way,  north  or  south,  going  to  conquest, 
or  going  to  defeat.  I  cannot  even  sum  up  those  great  names  ;  but 
Rameses  came  here  from  the  south  about  B.C.  1500,  and  Sennach- 
erib from  the  north,  700  years  latter.  It  was  equally  the  turnpike- 
way  of  Alexander,  B.C.  332,  and  of  Vespasian,  400  years  later ;  of 
Sesostris,  and  Saladin.  '  It  was  the  apostolical  highway,  all  the 
missionary  apostles  traversing  it  again  and  again,  as  they  went  to 
and  from  Antioch,  and  up  and  down,  preaching  to  a  sinful  world. 
By  this  highway,  about  A.D.  320,  came  the  venerable  mother  of 
Constantine  the  Great,  Hellena,  at  an  extremely  old  age,  yearn- 
ing to  behold  the  places  that  Christ  had  sanctified  by  His  cor- 
poral presence.  By  this  route  had  come  the  Assyrian  with  his 
shadowy  shroud  and  high  stature  (Ez.  xxxi.),  and  along  this  road,  in 
the  summer  of  A.D.  1099,  the  armies  of  the  Cross  slowly  worked 
their  way  southward  towards  Jerusalem,  yet  200  miles  in  the  distance. 

About-halfway  between  Beyrout  and  Gebal,  and  close  to  the  road, 
there  is  a  beautiful  sheet  of  water  styled  Junia  Bay  (the  word  Junia 
meaning  a  plain).  Near  the  middle  of  the  curve  of  this  bay  stands 
a  large  Stone  Column,  broken  in  the  midst,  the  lower  part  about  ten 
feet  long,  yet  standing  erect,  originally  erected  probably  as  a  Roman 
milestone.  Upon  this  I  engraved  with  my  chisel  the  memorial 
Square  and  Compass,  cutting  it  in  the  sea- ward  side,  so  that  ordinary 
travelers  may  not  observe  it,  and  dedicated  it  to  the  lodges  at  Des 
Homes,  Iowa,  who  gave  me  such  a  royal  reception,  Thanksgiving 
night,  1867 ;  Elizabethtown,  Kentucky,  and  Dubuque,  Iowa.  If  evei 
those  members  come  along  this  way,  as  I  hope  some  of  them  will, 
let  them  stop  and  see  how  upon  the  face  of  the  everlasting  rock 
here  I  imprinted  this  mark  of  loving  remembrance.  I  also  locate, 
at  this  fitting  place,  the  following  names  of  Masons  who  have  emu- 
lated the  fortitude  of  him  whose  emblem  was  the  Brofan  Column : 
W.  W.  Goodwin,  Charles  Marsh,  Solon  Thornton,  George  R.  Fearn, 
B.  Perley  Poore,  N.  P.  Langford,  R,  W.  Furnas,  Alex.  H.  Newcomb, 
Richard  Vaux,  and  J.  P.  Almond. 

Walking  aside  from  this  great  milestone,  I  see  something  fluttering 
among  the  rocks,  and  on  strict  examination  discover,  nor  lizard  nor 
snake,  but  a  wounded  dove,  its  sweet  love-notes  changed  to  piteous 

9 


13u  TUBAL  CAIX. 

moans,  a  legular  Jonath  elem-verhobim,  as  the  ancient  Hebrew  would 
have  called  it,  "  a  dumb  dove  in  distant  places. "  The  best  I  can  do 
for  this  poor  Noah's  messenger,  with  its  great  flutter  of  wings,  is  to 
put  it  out  of  its  misery ;  a  broken  side  and  a  useless  wing  being  very 
far  above  my  powers  of  surgery.  Am  I  mistaken  in  thinking  there  is  a 
passage  in  David's  lite  recalling  this  incident  ?  No  ;  here  it  is,  in  the 
caption  of  the  56th  Psalm,  "When  the  Philistines  took  him  in  Gath." 

At  the  distance  of  about  three  miles  south  of  Gebal,  I  crossed  the 
Nahr  Ibrahim,  or  River  of  Abraham,  famous  in  mythology  as  "the 
Ki\vr  of  Adonis,"  which,  according  to  tradition,  annually  ran  blood, 
in  commemoration  of  the  death  of  Adonis,  which  occurred  on  the 
heights  near  the  head-waters  of  this  stream.  I  will  refer  to  the 
subject  again.  The  waters  of  Nahr  Ibrahim  were  unquestionably 
tinged  with  red  the  day  I  crossed  it,  as  I  presume  they  always  are 
after  such  a  severe  rain-storm  as  we  had  had  the  night  before.  The 
river  was  quite  full,  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet  wide,  ten  or 
twelve  deep,  and  friuged  with  the  usual  willow,  cane,  and  oleander- 
growth  of  the  country.  Just  beyond  the  bridge,  and  on  the  right 
hand  side  of  the  road,  I  observed  a  handsome  piece  of  Mosaic  Pave- 
ment, part  of  a  splendid  edifice  once  standing  there.  This  is  the 
first  I  had  seen.  Travellers  also  describe  the  remains  of  an  ancient 
aqueduct,  running  from  this  river  towards  Gebal,  by  which  the  old 
city  was  supplied  with  water;  but  I  did  not  observe  this. 

On  my  way  I  stopped  frequently  to  rest  and  refresh  myself, 
studying  human  nature,  of  which  there  is  a  great  deal  existing  in 
this  country.  At  a  blacksmith-shop  I  had  a  good  time.  To  say  it 
was  the  dirtiest  house  I  had  ever  seen  before,  but  imperfectly  describes 
the  loathsome  squalor  in  which  that  Tubal-Cain,  with  Mrs.  Cain,  and 
a  number  of  juvenile  Cains,  existed.  (They  raised  cain  at  the  rate 
of  seven  every  ten  years !)  To  say  that  this  atelier  was  more  infested 
with  fleas  and  lice  than  other  places  in  Holy  Land,  might  be  con- 
sidered invidious ;  but  I  am  sure  I  counted  five  species  of  lice  on  my 
coat-sleeve  as  I  came  out,  and  of  each  species,  varieties.  They  asked 
me  questions  and  questions.  I  answered  through  Hassan.  I  showed 
them  my  pistol,  eighteen-bladed  jack-knife,  the  portrait  of  my  wife,  my 
india-rubber  bottle  full  of  coffee,  my  self-folding  measuring  tape  (a 
startling  piece  of  ingenuity  to  them ;  they  never  wearied  of  it),  and 
e^en  pulled  out  my  Firman,  a  dreadful  piece  of  Arabic  writing, 
large  as  a  table-cloth,  of  which  I  gave  a  translation  in  a  preceding 
chapter.  A  Syrian  gentleman,  who  sat  with  us,  amused  at  my  efforts 


BLACKSMITH-SHOP.  131 

to  please  the  blacksmith  and  his  family,  recalls  the  description  of 
such,  with  which  I  am  familiar :  manner,  alert,  easy,  graceful,  cordial, 
insinuating ;  smile,  ready  and  sultry  as  the  Syrian  sunlight ;  quite 
a  young  man,  but  life  comes  early  under  the  sun  which  fondles  the 
fig,  olive,  vine,  and  palm. 

Another  of  the  company  was  a  tall,  thin  man,  with  dark  face, 
almost  covered  with  a  black  beard.  He  went  barefoot  usually.  He 
had  really  a  fine  beard,  and  an  expression  of  earnestness  and  sim- 
plicity of  character.  But  his  ignorance  was  startling.  He  actually 
seemed  to  know  less  than  the  blacksmith,  and  but  little  more  than 
the  blacksmith's  wife. 

In  this  blacksmith's  shop,  the  exceedingly  loquacious  natives  all 
talked  at  once.  Either  they  possess  the  faculty  of  talking  and  hear- 
ing at  the  same  time  (a  thing  I  cannot  do),  or  they  are  so  disposed 
to  garrulity  as  to  talk  without  caring  to  be  heard.  I  had  noticed 
this  same  peculiarity  among  the  French  officers  of  my  steamer, 
L'Am'erique,  in  Marseilles.  As  we  came  out,  Hassan  stigmatized 
the  whole  crowd  to  me  in  an  undertone  as  Shaitan,  meaning 
devils. 

Everybody  who  visits  this  country  notices  the  dogs,  so  often  and 
so  much  in  the  way.  The  blacksmith  had  nine  of  them.  Strange 
that  the  Bible-writers,  from  first  to  last,  have  made  the  dog  the 
image  of  scorn  and  contempt.  Moses  in  the  Pentateuch;  Job  in  hia 
noble  allegory  ;  David  in  his  matchless  psalms ;  our  Saviour  in  His 
parables;  Paul  in  his  Epistles;  John  in  his  Apocalypse,  uniformly 
agree  in  this;  and  the  Koran  of  Mohammed  fully  confirms  the 
Oriental  idea  of  the  dog.  And  yet,  if  the  tradition  is  true,  it  was  a 
•dog  that  discovered  the  use  of  the  celebrated  Tyrian  dye  that  be- 
came so  world-renowned.  And  Dr.  Barclay  gives  to  his  dog  the 
credit  of  discovering  the  great  quarry  under  Jerusalem.  However, 
I  mustn't  say  too  much  in  favor  of  the  dog,  as  the  Masonic  word 
Cowan  is  probably  derived  from  it;  and  what  is  worse  than  a 
cowan ! 

At  parting  I  gave  the  good  fellow  several  paras  (a  para  is  one- 
fourth  of  a  cent),  and  promised  to  call  again.  He  has  some  fine 
fig-trees  around  his  house ;  a  tree  which  flourishes  best  in  stony, 
barren  places,  where  "  there  is  not  much  depth  of  earth. "  It  does 
not  like  the  companionship  of  other  trees;  nothing  but  the  olive  is 
congenial  company  to  the  fig  on  these  stony  hills.  The  shade  pro- 
duced by  its  succulent,  five-lobed  leaves  and  spreading  branches  is 


132  STUDYING  ARABIC. 

rery  fine.  I  noticed  to-day  that  while  the  earth  under  my  feet  was 
really  hot,  and  made  the  soles  of  my  shoes  uncomfortably  warm,  the 
ground  under  this  large  fig-tree  was  cool  and  pleasant;  I  felt  the 
force  of  the  expression  in  1  Kings  iv.  25  :  "  And  Judah  and  Israel 
dwelt  safely,  every  man  under  his  vine  and  under  his  fig-tree.  "  In 
this  verse  the  fig-tree  is  named  as  a  symbol  of  peace  and  plenty,  for 
which  it  is  elegantly  adapted.  So  in  Micah  iv.  4;  Zech.  iii.  10;  John 
i.  49,  etc. 

1  shall  have  so  much  advice  to  give  to  Masonic  travellers  all 
through  this  volume,  that  it  will  be  politic  to  scatter  it  along  in 
chunks.  A  few  chunks,  then,  right  here.  As  to  the  difficulty  or 
danger  in  traversing  this  country,  the  mere  tourist  who  only  wants 
to  see  and  pass  along  will  find  not  the  least.  He  can  ride  over  the  sacred 
hills,  and  rest  himself  under  the  offered  shelters  of  Palestine,  with  as 
much  security  as  at  home.  The  fanaticism  of  the  Mohammedan  has 
given  way  to  the  craving  for  gold ;  the  cry  of  backsheesh  drowns  the 
old  clamor  of  Allah  il  Allah.  It  is  the  explorer  only  who  experi- 
ences any  difficulty  in  pursuing  his  aims.  To  excavate,  to  pull  downr 
to  expose  the  ancient  foundations,  where  alone  can  anything  valuable 
be  looked  for;  it  is  this  that  revives  the  ancient  hatred,  and  exposes 
the  seeker  for  light  to  delays,  extortions,  and  sometimes  worse.  For 
this  reason  it  is  best,  in  general,  for  several  to  go  in  company,  both 
for  mutual  protection  in  digging,  etc.,  and  encouragement 

The  most  careless  traveller  in  the  East  is  constantly  reminded 
that  he  is  in  the  land  of  the  Bible,  and  it  is  in  poor  taste  to  make 
such  tours  as  Browne  and  Clements  did  for  the  sole  purpose  of 
making  sport  The  latter  («  Mark  Twain,"  as  he  likes  to  call  himself), 
facile  humorist  as  he  is,  might  have  recalled  the  school-day  adage, 
ludere  cum  sacris,  not  to  jest  on  holy  themes.  It  is  the  easiest  as 
well  as  the  least  praiseworthy  effort  of  wit,  and  every  admirer  of 
Mark  Twain  must  regret  that  "Pilgrims  Abroad"  did  not  terminate 
their  journey  where  they  began  it,  in  Europe. 

In  regard  to  the  Arabic  language,  I  really  wouldn't  advise  any 
American  to  learn  it,  unless  he  is  qualifying  himself  for  a  Professor, 
a  Dragoman,  a  Consul,  or  a  Missionary.  If,  in  spite  of  my  warnings, 
vou  undertake  it,  I  am  afraid  you  will  say,  as  an  irreverent  friend 
iliil  under  the  same  circumstances,  that  when  "  God  created  the  fruit 

the  lips"  (Isaiah  Ivii.  19)  it  was  only  for  Arab  lips  that  he  created 

is particular  fruit!  And  yet.  you  might  learn  enough  of  it  (some 
travelers  don't)  to  call  the  plural  of  dragoman  dragomaws,  and  of 


IRON    GRIP   OF   DESPOTISM.  133 

Moslem  Mosfems.  Dragomen  is  as  near  right  as  pen  is  the  plural  of 
pan.  About  one  hundred  words  in  Arabic  are  enough  for  any  one 
to  travel  on  here.  If  you  wish  'to  talk  to  respectable  people,  learn 
French. 

Don't  disparage  too  much  the  race  who  now  inhabit  this  country.  See 
what  they  have  produced  when  temporarily  released  from  the  iron 
grip  of  despotism,  and  consider  that  in  the  minds  of  many  a  peasant 
here,  whose  every  moment  is  bestowed  in  wringing  from  the  soil  a 
scanty  subsistence,  there  slumber  powers  which  might  have  elevated 
their  possessors  to  the  head  of  armies,  to  thrones,  to  the  rule  of 
literary  coteries,  to  the  guidance  of  religious  sects  whose  debates 
shake  the  world,  had  fortune  been  more  propitious  to  them. 

It  is  a  merit  in  an  Oriental  traveller  to  have  muscle — bodily  vigor. 
Our  good  Masonic  brother,  Belzoni,  who  became  one  of  the  most 
famous  of  Egyptian  explorers,  began  as  a  circus-rider,  for  wnich  his 
great  size  and  muscular  developments  well  adapted  him.  His  Egyp- 
tian travels  began  in  1815  ;  his  death  occurred  in  1823. 

The  natives  say  there  is  a  plant  grows  here  which,  when  powdered, 
is  grim  death  to  fleas.  But  I  think  they  never  powder  it.  Costar's 
Exterminators  (cat,  rat,  and  roach)  have  never  been  introduced  into 
Syria !  The  flea,  in  fact,  reigns  here,  unsubdued  as  yet.  The  very 
earth  teems  with  them.  Is  it  possible,  asks  a  pious  lady  over  her 
Bible,  that  it  was  so  in  ancient  times  ?  Did  Deborah,  Miriam,  Abi- 
gail  but  the  theme  becomes  too  aifecting!  I  will  say,  how- 
ever, that  if  the  plowmen  here  would  only  scratch  the  earth  as 
deeply,  vigorously,  and  persistently  as  they  do  their  calloused  bodies, 
their  granaries  would  enjoy  the  results  of  it. 

Make  a  point  of  comparing  daily  objects  with  those  Scriptural  facts 
that  enter  into  our  prayers  and  sermons ;  see  how  bread  is  made 
"  daily ;"  how  the  native  salt  "  loses  its  savor ;"  how  the  goaded 
cattle  "  kick  against  the  pricks ;"  how  the  south  wind  blows  heat 
and  the  west  wind  rain;— but  there  is  no  end  to  these  analogies. 

The  indolence  of  these  people  is  like  the  offence  of  contumacy  in  the 
Masonic  code;  it  is  unpardonable,  because  embracing  all  other  faults. 
To  give  an  instance  of  native  laziness  which  annoyed  me  greatly  • 
I  hired  a  man  in  Beyrout,  at  daily  wages,  to  saw  up  a  lot  of  seasoned 
olive-wood  which  I  had  purchased.  By  the  third  day  he  had 
gathered  round  him  all  the  idlers  in  the  place,  and  I  venture  the 
assertion  that  the  eight  hours'  work  for  which  I  paid  him,  done,  too, 
with  his  miserable  little  back-action  hand-saw,  seated  on  the  ground, 


134  THE  LOW,   MEAN  VICES. 

and  holding  the  wood  with  his  toes,  could  all  have  been  done  in  one 
hour  by  an  American  competitor. 

They  are,  generally,  an  incurious  tace,  and,  of  course,  an  ignorant 
one;  they  have  yet  to  understand  the  first  principles  embodied  in 
the  degree  of  "  Grand  Inquisitor  Commander,"  as  the  old  transla- 
tors rendered  it. 

You  must  not  be  disappointed,  in  a  country  so  unfortunate  in  its 
history  as  this,  to  find  the  low,  mean  vices  of  lying,  swearing,  petty  theft, 
and  vulgarity,  extremely  common.  But  the  better  opening  remains 
for  you  to  teach  them  a  better  way.  An  American  Mason,  who  is 
not  addicted  to  these  degrading  habits,  becomes  an  effective  mission- 
ary of  morality  to  these  heathen,  reflecting  honor  upon  the  craft,  his 
country,  himself,  and  his  God. 

That  experienced  Masonic  traveller,  Dr.  Livingstone,  fittingly 
rebukes  that  class  of  tourists  who  hurry  over  the  ground,  abuse  and 
look  ferocious  at  their  companions,  merely  to  show  how  fast  they  can 
travel.  He  styles  such  characters  "  combinations  of  silliness  and 
absurdity." 

This  is  a  good  field  to  disseminate  Sunday-School  ideas.  Anything 
BO  practical  and  fruitful  in  good  results  as  the  American  Sunday- 
School  system  is  bound  to  succeed  among  such  people  as  these.  I 
met  a  man  in  England  who  appreciated  it.  He  was  from  Stockport. 
England,  where  the  largest  Sunday-School  in  the  world  is  maintained 
(300  teachers,  1,500  scholars),  and  he  admitted  to  me,  in  confidence, 
that  the  Americans  are  far  ahead  of  them  in  this  department  of 
instruction.  I  had  an  agreeable  hour  describing  to  him  my  old 
'Berean  Bible-Class"  in  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  at  Chicago, 
Illinois. 

Those  who  have  read  Robinson's  Biblical  Researches,  three  large 
volumes,  with  a  fourth  volume  of  maps,  must  suppose  Kobinson  had 
spent  the  years  of  an  active  life  travelling  and  making  all  those  dis- 
coveries. No  such  thing.  He  was  here  only  a  few  weeks !  but  his 
companion,  Dr.  Smith,  had  spent  very  many  years  here,  was  perfectly 
familiar  with  the  people,  the  country,  and  the  language,  and  it  was 
his  knowledge,  sifted  and  crystallized  by  Robinson,  that  made  up 
those  valuable  books.  That  which  gave  the  books  their  real  value 
was,  there  was  nothing  in  the  field  before  them  except  works  written 
by  Catholic  travellers,  who  only  know  what  "the  Church"  tells 
them,  or  small  sketch-books  not  worth  shelf-room  in  a  library. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

GEBAL. 

ARRIVED  at  Gebal  a  little  before  night  and  was  lodged  in 
the  Bachelors'  Hall  of  some  Maronite  (Roman  Catholic) 
priests,  who  have  charge  of  an  ancient  church  here,  which 
is  considered  a  curiosity  by  all  lovers  of  ecclesiastical  archi- 
tecture. It  was  built  about  800  years  ago,  and,  except  for 
exhibiting  the  marks  of  old  age,  given  by  King  Solomon  in  the  twelfth 
chapter  of  Ecclesiastes,  is  none  the  worse  for  its  years. .  The  roof,  floor, 
walls,  and  supports  are  all  of  stone.  In  fact,  there  is  nothing  wvoden 
about  it.  I  was  so  much  interested  in  this  ancient  relic  that  I  gave 
a  Napoleon  (14.00)  of  Masonic  money  towards  its  conservation  and 
repair. 

The  town  of  Gebal  lies  about  twenty-five  miles  up  the  coast  (north) 
from  Beyrout.  It  stands  upon  an  easy  and  regular  slope  from  the 
sea  eastward,  the  slope  extending  about  two  miles  along  the  coast, 
and  from  one  to  two  miles  back.  All  this  space  and  more  was  once 
thronged  Avith  temples,  palaces,  and  other  splendid  erections,  the  re- 
mains of  which,  in  granite,  marble,  and  Lebanon  limestone,  are  visible 
in  every  stone-fence  upon  the  surface,  and  appear  in  excavations  at 
depths  varying  from  ten  to  thirty  feet.  But  now  Gebal  is  a  poor  and 
forlorn  little  village  of  five  hundred  inhabitants.  There  is  not  one 
edifice  standing  now  that  has  the  least  attractions,  unless  it  be  the 
old  Maronite  Church,  already  alluded  to,  and  that  does  not  date  beyond 
the  Crusades.  There  is  a  force  of  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  soldiers, 
red-legged  Turkish  Zouaves,  who  live  in  some  new  buildings,  the 
remnants  of  more  costly  structures,  while  the  grand  old  castle  next 
the  sea  is  suffered  to  fall  into  irreparable  decay.  Desolation  and 
neglect  are  written  upon  all  the  remains  of  Gebal. 

My  time  during  three  days  at  this  place  was  spent  between  visiting 
the  more  prominent  localities,  purchasing  coins  and  antiquities,  and 


130  8TONE-SQUARERS   OF  GEBAL. 

writing  up  my  notes  for  preservation.  It  is  one  of  my  peculiar!  tiet 
that  I  cannot  think  freely  unless  I  have  pencil  in  hand;  hence  my 
large  use  of  white  paper  upon  occasions  like  these.  The  Oriental  cus- 
tom of  crowding  the  traveller's  room  by  day  and  night  with  guests, 
bidden  or  unbidden,  made  it  so  well-nigh  impossible  for  me  to  write 
by  daylight  that  I  soon  took  to  the  free  use  of  candles,  purchased  in 
the  bazaars,  and  so  wrought  out  my  plans  in  ink  after  all  Gebal  hud 
succumbed  to  the  dominion  of  slumber.  The  objects  collected  here 
are  numerous  and  varied,  such  as  coins  in  great  numbers ;  sea-shells ; 
specimens  of  the  red  and  gray  granites  and  porphyry,  imported  here 
at  incalculable  expense  in  the  olden  times ;  funeral  lamps ;  tear-bot- 
tles and  beads  from  the  Phoenician  tombs,  etc.,  etc.  I  longed  to  make 
good  collections  of  the  early  spring-flowers  that  paint  this  beautiful 
site  of  Gebal ;  but  this  is  a  matter  requiring  a  longer  stay,  more  active 
limbs  and  flexible  spine  than  I  can  boast  of  at  the  age  of  fifty.  I 
found  I  was  not  able  personally  to  make  many  botanical  collections 
in  the  Holy  Land. 

Gebal  derived  its  name  originally  from  the  hill  on  which  it  stood. 
The  Greeks  changed  the  name  to  Byblos,  but  in  this  case,  as  in  many 
others,  the  title  imposed  by  the  conquerors  fell  into  oblivion,  while 
the  original  name  was  retained.  Gebal  also  gave  its  name  to  the  country 
around  it,  which,  in  Joshua  xiii.  5,  is 'termed  "the  land  of  the  Gib- 
lites."  This,  it  will  be  remembered,  was  more  than  fourteen  centuries 
b'-f.ire  Christ,  or  3,300  years  ago.  In  the  days  of  Solomon,  the  people 
of  Gebal  were  the  most  skillful  sailors  and  artists  under  the  dominion 
of  King  Hiram.  So  eminent  were  they  in  architecture,  that  the 
word  Qiblites,\n  Hebrew,  is  translated stone-squarers,  a  most  remarka- 
ble circumstance  (1  Kings  v.  18).  In  the  tremendous  denunciations  by 

zekiel  against  all  Phoenicia,  he  says  "  the  ancients  of  Gebal  and  the 
wise  men  thereof  were  in  thee  thy  calkers"  (Ez.  xxvii.  9).  This  was 
written  about  400  years  after  the  building  of  Solomon's  Temple,  and 
refers  to  the  city  I  am  now  describing. 

My.  visit  to  Gebal,  as  it  was  the  first  of  my  more  extended  Masonic 

explorations,  has  impressed  itself  more  deeply  upon  my  mind  than 

any  future  visit  could  be  expected  to  do.    Here  I  find  upon  the 

•ous  ashlars  of  Phoenician  ages  (hewn  stones  eighteen  feet  long 

upwards)  the  distinguishing  mark,  the  rebate  or  bevel,  of  which  I 

have  so  much  read,  but  now  for  the  first  time  in  my  life  I  see.   This  is 

Masonic  mark  of  ancient-craft  Masonry.    As  I  have  told  the  thou- 

brothers  and  fellows  who  will  read  these  pages,  all  stones 


THE   MIGHTY    SHAFTS. 

having  this  mark  upon  them  belong  to  us !  Our  fathers  wrought  theiu7 
and  set  them  up  in  useful  places  in  great  edifices,  and  we,  their  lineal 
descendants  in  the  mystical  line,  must  not  forget  our  inheritance 
therein.  The  stones  themselves  strike  an  American,  unused  to  such 
architectural  prodigies,  as  enormous.  They  are  twice  as  heavy  as  any 
wrought  ashlars  I  had  ever  before  seen,  but  of  course  do  not  compare 
with  some  at  Baalbec  and  Jerusalem. 

And  this  deep-plowed  furrow  upon  their  edges — what  a  hopeful 
thought  does  this  convey  to  a  Freemason !  So  long  as  that  mark 
remains — so  long  as  the  main  surface  of  the  wall  stands  out  far 
enough  to  protect  and  shield  that  mystic  devictfof  the  Phoenician,  so 
long  the  institution  of  Freemasonry  will  survive!  This  is  the  lesson 
they  inculcate  to  me  as  I  turn  away  silently  from  them  and  draw  my 
breath  with  amazement.  Let  the  BlancUardites  note  it  with  dismay. 

Gebal  is  full  of  the  "  Handmarks  of  Hiram."  Hundreds  and  thou- 
sands of  granite  columns  are  here,  both  of  the  red  and  white  varieties, 
taken  from  the  quarries  of  Egypt,  with  all  the  enormous  labor  which 
the  working  of  that  primitive  stone  requires ;  brought  a  thousand 
miles  down  the  Nile ;  shipped  thence  on  Phoenician  vessels  or  rafts 
to  this  coast,  landed  here,  drawn  up  this  steep  hill  by  human  hands, 
and  finally  reared  up,  doubtless  with  shoutings  and  rejoicings. 
Thousands  of  them,  I  say,  are  here,  from  twelve  to  thirty  inches  in 
diameter,  and  from  ten  to  forty  feet  in  length,  their  surfaces  often 
as  smooth  and  unaffected  by  the  weather  as  on  the  day  they  left 
Egypt,  two,  three,  or  four  thousand  years  ago.  They  prop  up  the 
stalls  in  the  bazaars ;  they  sustain  the  filthy  roofs  of  stables ;  they 
are  built  into  the  military  castle,  and  other  public  edifices  in  num- 
bers ;  they  are  worked  into  stone  walls ;  in  short,  they  are  used  with 
a  profuseness  that  shows  the  inexhaustible  quantities  of  them  that 
now  lie  concealed  among  the  ruins. 

It  is  but  a  brief  seven  miles  east  of  this  place  that  Aphaca,  the 
principal  seat  of  the  worship  of  Adonis,  or  Tammuz,  stood.  Thia 
worship  was  the  Freemasonry  of  the  heathen,  and  the  system  upon 
which  King  Solomon  engrafted  the  revealed  precepts  given  his  fathers 
upon  Sinai.  As  the  wild  stock  into  which  the  inspired  Word  was 
engrafted,  these  Eites  of  Tammuz  deserve  the  attention  of  Masonic 
writers.  This  is  not  the  place  to  enlarge  upon  the  theme ;  but  I  must 
DC  permitted  to  say  that  a  system  which  had  the  favor  and  support 
of  the  wisest  and  best-cultivated  of  the  human  race  for  two  thousand 
years;  that  led  to  the  cultivation  of  the  fine  arts  as  they  have  nevei 


£38  SARCOPHAGI  OF   GEBAL. 

been  cultivated  since ;  and  that  was  thought  worthy,  by  so  far-reach- 
ing  a  mind  as  King  Solomon's,  of  adoption  and  incorporation  into 
the  inspired  theology,  cannot  have  been  altogether  vile.  That,  by 
the  age  of  Constantino,  A.D.  306,  it  may  have  become  so  corrupt  that 
that  zealous  reformer  thought  it  necessary  to  uproot  the  last  traces 
of  it,  is  quite  likely.  But  the  same  thing  may  be  said  of  the  prevail- 
ing system  of  Christianity  at  the  same  period.  By  the  age  of  Con- 
stantine  the  Rites  of  Adonis  had  probably  accomplished  whatever 
good  was  embodied  in  them;  but  they  must  have  presented  many 
innocent  and  pure  traits  to  attract  the  admiration  of  a  Solomon.  It 
was  then,  doubtless,  that  this  wide-spread  system  of  worship  gave  to 
the  poet  his  idea  of  the  Age  of  Gold. 

I  reserve  to  this  place,  however,  to  justify  Freemasons  in  selecting 
Gebal  as  one  of  their  seven  prominent  Masonic  localities.  It  is,  that 
here  was  the  great  School  of  Architecture  and  of  the  seven  liberal 
arts  and  sciences.  Here,  in  the  days  of  Hiram,  the  Widow's  Son, 
was  a  congregation  of  earth's  wisest,  let  us  believe  earth's  best  spirits, 
to  whom  a  seeker  of  knowledge  like  himself  could  come  for  instruc- 
tion, and  where  such  a  genius  as  his  could  be  fitly  schooled.  From 
this  centre  of  learning  went  the  men  who  planned  that  unparalleled 
Temple  across  the  hills  eastward,  that  crowns  the  plateau  of  Baalbec, 
just  as  from  here  fared  the  Masters  of  the  Building  Art  who  went 
e  mthward  down  the  coast  to  build  a  matchless  Fane  on  Mount 
Moriah,  at  Jerusalem.  The  Paphian  Temple,  on  the  Island  of  Cyprus 
yonder,  in  the  west,  which  was  thought  unapproachable  for  beauty, 
doubtless  received  its  inspiration  from  the  same  men,  as  many 
another  temple,  palace,  and  stronghold  did,  during  successions  of 
ages.  I  stood  within  the  tombs  of  some  of  these  Giblites,  excavations 
painfully  chiselled  in  the  hard  blue  limestone  of  the  hills.  I  saw  a 
row  of  their  stone  coffins  (sarcophagi)  opened.  I  purchased  many  of 
their  funeral  lamps,  scarabaei  and  other  tokens  of  their  faith,  and  com- 
ing back  to  my  housetop  I  walked  and  mused  upon  the  hopes  embodied 
in  these  emblems.  Hopes  of  some  kind  (the  resurrection  and  the 
soul's  immortality)  we  know  those  old  Masons  had  ;  the  rites  handed 
il  >wn  through  so  many  generations  from  them  to  us  clearly  prove 
that.  But  a  resurrection  to  what  ?  and  immortality  for  what  ?  what 
secrets  were  so  held  within  their  emblems  ?  what  made  them  so  anxious 
to  express  them  in  outward  marks,  but  to  conceal  them  even  at  the 
risk  of  their  being  forever  lost  as  to  their  esoteric  meaning?  I  find 
in  my  note-book  this  acrostic: 


TWENTY-TWO   PROM  GEBAL.  139 

Gone,  gone  thy  glories,  city  of  the  wise  ; 

Extinguished  all  thy  lamps  above,  below ; 
But  from  this  dust  a  viewless  spirit  cries, 

Announcing  to  the  ages  as  they  go, 

Life  from  the  tombs  and  light  in  Heaven's  perpetual  glow ! 

Did  he  who  prepared  the  rituals  of  the  Select  Master's  Degree  have 
in  mind  that  exquisite  passage  from  an  English  poet — 

Silence  and  darkness,  solemn  sisters,  twins 
From  ancient  night,  who  mark  the  tender  thought, 
To  reason,  and  on  reason  build  resolve, 
That  column  of  true  majesty  in  man. 

The  "twenty-two  from  Gebal,"  who  constituted  so  large  a  portion 
of  the  mystic  number  twenty-seven  in  a  Lodge  of  Select  Masters, 
were,  of  course,  drafted  from  this  city,  and  each  of  them  must  have 
seen,  as  I  see  to-day,  this  enormous  ashlar  that  forms  the  base  of  the 
old  castle- wall  near  the  seashore.  It  is  nearly  twenty  feet  long,  and 
broad  and  deep  in  proportion.  To  whom  can  I  dedicate  it  with  so 
great  propriety  as  to  King  Solomon  himself,  who,  it  is  said,  ordered  a 
number  of  stones  cut  upon  this  model,  beveled  as  this  is,  and  built 
on  this  the  foundation  of  the  Temple-wall  in  Mount  Moriah,  as  is 
seen  to  this  day. 

And  here  at  Gebal  I  am  insensibly  reminded  of  the  reflection  made 
by  a  distinguished  poet  (Lamartine),  while  visiting  another  spot 
famous  in  history.  Let  me  quote  it:  "I  pass  delicious  hours, 
recumbent  beneath  the  shade,  my  eyes  fixed  on  the  falling  pediment 
of  that  Parthenon.  Its  aspect  displays,  better  than  history,  the 
colossal  grandeur  of  a  people.  What  superhuman  civilization  was 
that  which  supplied  a  great  man  to  command,  an  architect  to  con- 
ceive, a  sculptor  to  decorate,  statuaries  to  execute,  workmen  to  cut, 
a  people  to  pay,  and  eyes  to  comprehend  and  admire  such  an  edifice 
as  this !  Where  again  shall  we  find  such  a  people,  or  such  a  period  ? 
Nowhere ! " 

The  same  poetical  writer  records  his  impressions  of  Gebal  in  these 
words — (he  was  here  April  13, 1833) :  "  I  slept  at  Gebal,  in  a  khan 
(tavern)  outside  the  city,  on  a  rising  ground  overlooking  the  sea. 
Gebal  is  supposed  to  be  the  country  of  the  ancient  Giblites,  who  sup- 
plied King  Hiram  with  squares  of  stone  for  the  building  of  the 
Temple  of  Solomon.  The  father  of  Adonis  had  a  palace  here.  The 
worship  of  the  sun  constituted  the  religion  of  all  the  neighboring 


|40  MARK   OF  THE   CRAFT. 

»ou  nines  of  Tyre."  My  readers  will  readily  correct  the  mistake 
into  which  our  French  brother,  or  his  translator,  has  fallen,  in  writing 
squares  of  stone  for  squarers  of  stone. 

Before  leaving  Gebal,  I  sought  out  the  entrance  of  one  of  the  great 
Phoenician  tombs,  carved  out  of  the  face  of  the  cliffs  high  above  the 
town,  and  there  cut  deeply  with  my  chisel  the  Square  and  Compass, 
dedicating  it  to  a  number  of  active  working  and  renowned  members 
of  the  Craft,  named  below.  There,  too,  I  waved  aloft  my  Masonic 
banner  in  the  strong  breeze  blowing  from  the  sea. 

On  this  cliff,  in  the  pure  air  of  this  mountain  region,  sounds  move 
with  the  greatest  freedom.  I  hear  the  muezzin  in  the  minaret  of  the 
mosque,  a  mile  away,  with  perfect  ease:  II  Allah— ah — ah — ah,  "No 
Ood  but  God,"  and  my  heart  answers:  "Amen:  So  mote  it  be!"  So 
tin-  trumpets  of  the  Crusaders  sounded  as  they  came  down  this  coast 
from  Antioch,  A.D.  1099,  on  their  way  to  the  Holy  City.  So  the 
"procul,  procul"  of  the  priests  of  Adonis  rang  through  this  clear  air, 
many  centuries  before. 

In  selecting  appropriate  names  of  Masons  worthy  to  be  associated 
with  this  School  of  Hiram's  builders,  I  anticipate  the  general  ap- 
proval of  the  following:  L.  E.  Hunt,  John  S.  Perry,  A.  G.  Abell, 
Win  slow  Lewis,  John  Augustus  Williams,  J.  Emmet  Blackshear, 
William  M.  Cunningham,  Thomas  H.  Logan,  A.  R.  Cotton,  James 
Gibson. 

I  found  no  member  of  the  Masonic  fraternity  here,  but  among  the 
officers  in  the  garrison  several,  who  have  probably  since  united  with 
the  lodge  at  Bey  rout  In  the  nomenclature  of  American  lodges 
some  are  named  Hiram  A  biff  Lodge,  as,  for  instance,  No.  90,  Maine, 
etc. 

In  my  preface  I  alluded  to  the  provocations  to  laughter  that  meet 
the  traveller  here.  Will  my  readers  accept  a  little  nonsense  that  I 
wrote  from  Gebal  for  that  genial  brother,  Robert  D.  Holmes  (now, 
alas!  silent  in  the  grave),  to  publish  in  the  New  York  Sunday 
Dispatch  f 

"1  would  fain  disport  me  iii  this  exceedingly  solemn  and  un- 
hilarious  country,  where  the  only  thing  that  ever  seems  to  smile  is 
the  camel;  and  this  is  only  a  pretence,  as  I  verified  to-day,  when, 
attracted  by  the  pleasing  manner  in  which  he  threw  his  lower  jaw 
around  his  upper  one,  I  went. up  to  pat  him  and  he  bit  me.  Such 
is  life.  I  haven't  had  a  good  laugh  since  I  landed  on  the  Syrian 
30Mt 


THE   ANTEEK-HUNTEK.  141 

"I  came  from  Beyrout  to  Gebal  the  other  day,  chiefly  to  collect 
relics.  I  was  also  slightly  in  hopes  of  finding  the  remains  of  the 
Christian  tribes  of  Israel,  long  lost,  and  probably  the  murderer  of 
Helen  Jewett.  Nobody  seems  to  have  been  here  before,  at  least  I 
couldn't  find  anybody  that  knew  anything  about  it,  and  the  only 
guide-book  that  speaks  of  it  is  the  Holy  Writings — good  authority, 
but  rather  ancient  as  a  book  of  travels.  However,  I  got  here  easy 
enough,  because  all  you  have  to  do  is  to  follow  the  coast.  If  you 
undertake  to  turn  to  the  right  you  go  over  Jebel  Sunnin,  some  eight 
thousand  feet  high  (one  thousand  of  it  solid  snow-banks),  and  if  you 
would  deviate  even  slightly  to  the  left,  you  experience  Jonah's  fate, 
without  the  intervention  of  Jonah's  whale.  I  came  in  eight  hours, 
and  took  lodgings  in  a  house  kept  by  three  priests,  who,  no  doubt, 
would  have  been  extremely  shocked  had  they  understood  my  ques- 
tion when  I  politely  inquired  as  to  the  health  of  their  wives  and 
children. 

"  My  arrival  was  the  signal  for  all  Gebal  to  gather  at  my  quarters 
with  what  they  call  'anteeks.'  And  such  antics  as  the  bare-legged 
fellows  do  cut  when  they  call  on  you!  Try  to  realize  the  condition 
of  the  American  Howadji  trading  for  '  anteeks.'  Poor,  but  proud, 
as  you  know,  I  rigged  up  a  seat  upon  an  upright  stone  by  covering  it 
with  all  my  overcoats  and  blankets,  and  upon  that  I  sat  in  state. 
Dignity  is  not  wasted  even  on  Arabs.  Intelligence  of  expression, 
firmness  mingled  with  suavity  (suaviter  in  modo,  etc.,  you  have  the 
rest) ;  the  strictest  honor  in  dealing  out  small  change,  yet  the 
severest  decision  in  requiring  an  honest  compensation ;  these  are  the 
true  principles  for  traffic  in  'anteeks,'  and  these  the  American 
Howadji  (if  the  court  knows  herself)  has  displayed,  as  all  Gebal  will 
testify. 

"  My  first  purchases  6f  '  anteeks '  were  curious.  A  number  of 
decanter  stoppers,  avowedly  from  Phoenician  tombs,  cost  me  quite  a 
handful  of  ten-para  pieces.  Buckles,  cast  off  by  the  military,  I 
secured  in  good  supply.  I  think  I  should  have  gone  on  purchasing 
buckles  to  the  last  had  I  not  found  the  trade-mark  "  Smith  &  Brown" 
on  one,  and  this  made  me  skeptical.  Broken  crockery,  several  crates 
full.  This,  I  felt,  I  was  getting  cheap,  viz.,  one  para  for  ten  pieces 
(now,  one  para  is  one-fortieth  part  of  ten  cents) ;  I,  therefore,  secured 
the  golden  opportunity,  and  if  I  can  get  it  all  shipped  to  America, 
you  must  advertise  for  me,  for  I  shall  open  a  wholesale  establishment 
3f  Syrian  sherds.  The  next  day,  however,  I  took  an  extensive  walk 


142  BARE-LEGGED  BARNACLE. 

across,  around,  and  under  Gebal,  and  I  should  testify,  if  upon  oath, 
that  one-half  the  soil  is  broken  crockery.  Query:  Did  the  ancient 
Phoenicians  slosh  around  and  break  things  as  they  do  in  Alabama  ? 
If  not,  why  so  many  broken  vessels  ?  But  this  discovery  stopped 
further  purchases  of  sherds. 

"  Having  bought  up  all  the  buckles,  tops  of  pewter  buttons,  brass 
tacks,  glass  beads,  etc.,  together  with  a  considerable  quantity  of 
musket-flints,  which  I  was  assured  had  curious  inscriptions  on  them, 
I  saw  that  I  was  making  no  headway,  and  began  to  inquire  for 
ancient  coins.  At  this,  the  modern  Giblites  sneered.  Coins? 
Why,  they  told  Hassan  the  very  earth  was  old  coins,  in  various  stages 
of  dilapidation!  Still,  I  insisted  that,  salable  as  the  articles  they 
had  been  furnishing  me  admittedly  were,  yet  the  old  coins  of  Phoe- 
nicia and  her  conquerors  were  what  I  had  come  for.  Then  they  went 
out  for  a  few  hours,  and  brought  them  in.  I  must  honestly  aver 
that  I  didn't  know  there  was  so  much  specie  of  the  copper  coinage 
in  the  whole  world  as  there  is  here  among  the  ruins  of  Gebal.  Every 
object  in  nature,  and  a  great  many  objects  out  of  nature,  are  stamped 
on  them.  Names,  portraits,  inscriptions,  and  emblems  abound,  often 
in  the  best  state  of  preservation.  The  Howadji  was  amazed,  and 
began  to  ask  himself  what  conveyance,  under  the  elephants  of 
Antiochus,  that  used  to  come  down  this  road  some  2,300  years  ago, 
could  convey  such  burdens,  if  I  bought  them  all.  I  bought,  and 
bought,  anl  bought,  until  nature  and  my  small  change  were 
exhausted,  and  then  I  closed  my  purchases. 

"  Of  genuine  relics  and  antiques  (let  me  be  serious  for  a  moment)  I 
procured  a  good  supply,  in  the  form  of  tear-bottles,  funeral  lamps, 
cornelian  scarabaei,  seals  of  various  devices,  and  several  elegant  carv- 
ings in  marble,  but  sadly  mutilated. 

"  In  making  my  daily  tour  around  and  beneath  the  place  (I  mean 

the  tombs  so  wonderfully  excoriated  beneath   the  surface),  I  was 

guided  by  an  old,  bare-legged  barnacle,  who  clung  to  me  from  first 

•  last  with  unwearying  devotion.    Had  the  mainspring  of  his  zeal 

been  the  love  of  science,  Agassiz  himself  might  well  defer  to  him,  but 

;t  was  the  love  of  backsheesh.    It  was  the  funniest  sight  in  the 

rorld  to  look  at  my  procession,  and  I  wonder  that  even  that  fellow 

o  goes  out  on  the  top  of  the  Mohammedan  mosque  every  little 

•  to  scream  out  <Hu  Mah !'  didn't  stop  to  laugh  as  he  saw  it 

t  went  the  bare-legged  old  gray-beard,  in  his  right  hand  a  long- 

itemmed  pipe.     He  had  but  two  passions,  one  to  get  me  to  the 


BLUNBEKS   OF   HASSAN".  141 

interesting  localities,  the  other  to  get  me  away  from  them  before  1 
could  see  anything.  This  Howadji  never  did  so  much  tall  walking 
to  so  little  purpose  in  his  life,  as  in  following  old  Backsheesh  the 
first  day.  Afterward,  however,  he  took  matters  more  into  his  own 
hands.  Next  to  the  guide  came  the  subscriber.  He  was  ornamented 
with  a  red  cap,  which  he  bought  at  Smyrna,  because  everybody  buys 
one  of  them  for  his  sins ;  he  wore  it  five  days  in  succession.  That 
sunstroke,  or  at  the  least  ophthalmia,  did  not  supervene,  is  a  subject 
of  gratitude.  Next  came  Hassan,  my  interpreter,  who  was  all  the 
time  interpreting  Arabic  into  hassanic  English.  This  dialect  of 
our  common  tongue  is  formed  chiefly  out  of  nouns,  with  a  few 
adjectives.  It  has  every  element  of  sublimity  near  to  profundity ; 
and  certainly  no  living  man  can  beat  it.  Let  me  give  you  a  specimen. 
Hassan  is  telling  me  how  to  smuggle  a  few  okes  of  G-ebal  tobacco  into 
Beyrout.  He  says,  '  Sojer  man  come  to  me — say,  you  tobakky  got  ? 
Me  say  no.  Then  he  irons,  big  irons  on  my  leg.  He  say  to  you,  you 
tobakky  got?  You  tell  him  go  way  dam  fool — go  hell — he  go? 
And  all  this  the  fellow  tells  me  with  perfect  gravity,  not  having  the 
least  idea  but  that  the  language  is  eminently  chaste  and  proper. 

"  Next  to  Hassan  come  the  rabble.  I  dare  not  tell  you  how  many 
persons  have  followed  me  about  Gebal,  people  are  so  skeptical  of 
travellers'  tales.  But  as  there  are  only  six  hundred  people  here,  you 
can  easily  make  the  estimate.  I  fear  that  some  of  my  company  were 
disreputable  characters,  but  as  there  is  no  Sunday  gaper  published  at 
Gebal  (nor  for  that  matter  any  other),  and  as  no  strangers  ever  visit 
the  place,  it  is  of  less  importance.  You  will,  of  course,  make  no 
mention  of  it  to  the  discredit  of  the  American  Howadji.  So  from 
ruin  to  ruin  we  wandered — now  looking  sadly  at  a  group  of  sar- 
cophagi wherein  once  lay  the  beloved  dead,  broken  to  pieces,  or,  still 
worse,  used  only  for  water-troughs  and  baser  purposes ;  now  plucking 
an  extraordinary  specimen  of  the  anemone,  which  crimsons  all  these 
hills  as  with  the  blood  of  Adonis;  now  chaffering  for  an  'anteek;' 
now  twisting  my  lame  ankle  round  a  boulder  until  I  seem  to  have 
more  than  the  usual  number  of  joints  in  it;  now  creeping  into  an 
excavation  lined  with  loculi  or  places  for  the  dead,  all  cut  into  the 
solid  rock;  DOW  sipping  coffee  with  some  G-iblite  gentleman,  who 
invites  me  to  his  house,  courteously  excuses  me  from  taking  off  my 
boots,  and  seats  me  in  the  Lewan,  the  place  of  honor ;  now  standing 
by  some  high  wall  anathematizing  the  barbarism  of  its  builders,  who 
destroyed  chapiters,  pillars,  and  sarcophagi,  with  ruthless  hand,  to 


|44  HUNTING  THE  HOWADJI. 

build  it,  undoing  in  a  day  what  years  of  labor  was  necessary  to  con- 
struct ;  now  from  some  high  place  looking  over  the  blue  sea  and 
heaving  a  homesick  sigh  after  that  steamer  whose  prow  points  west- 
ward ;  now  walking  over  the  piles  of  granite  columns  in  the  harbor ; 
now  sitting,  to  relieve  aching  foot,  and  conning  over  the  past  and 
the  glories  of  Gebal  till  the  sun  goes  down  and  the  jackal  begins  his 
cry,  and  I  return  to  my  room  to  write  out  the  adventures  of  the 
American  Howadji  for  the  New  York  Dispatch  and  its  million 
readers. 

"As  you  or  some  friend  may  desire  to  call  on  me  while  I  am  domi- 
ciled here,  I  will  give  you  explicit  directions  for  finding  my  boarding- 
house.  Let  us  suppose  you  starting  out  at  some  well-marked  locality 
in  the  city— say  at  the  corner  where  the  blind  beggar  sits,  near  the 
three  granite  columns,  a  little  east  of  the  narghileh  establishment 
half-way  up  the  hill.  Now  you  will  have  no  difficulty  in  tracing 
the  way  to  my  residence,  if  you  will  only  '  follow  the  directions/ 
The  embarrassment  experienced  by  some-  people  in  getting  round 
our  Oriental  city  is  greatly  exaggerated  by  their  neglect  'to  follow 
directions.' 

"  Well,  then,  take  the  blind  beggar  on  your  left  shoulder,  and 
come  round  the  new  barracks,  avoiding  as  far  as  you  can  those 
eight  donkeys  that  are  always  coming  round  that  particular  corner 
with  their  loads  of  stone  from  the  quarry.  So  far  you  have  made 
a  good  start  Uow  enter  that  street — don't  call  it  a  mere  drain; 
it  is  a  good  six  feet  wide — until  you  meet  the  camel  with  his  two 
bales  of  cotton.  Avoid  that  camel ;  he  snapped  at  me  one  morn- 
ing. On  now  to  where  the  boys  are  playing  marbles.  If  they 
throw  stones  at  you,  smile  and  pass  on.  The  darlings;  their  little 
arms  are  not  strong  enough  to  hurt  you  much,  though  they  may 
break  your  spectacles,  as  they  did  mine.  Look  back.  They  are 
saying  something  in  Arabic  that  is  doubtless  a  blessing  on  the 
stranger's  head.  On  again  to  the  second  or  third  turning  to  the 
right— usually  you  will  find  there  a  man  who  sells  bread.  Ask  him 
(in  Arabic)  to  direct  you  to  my  house." 

While  I  was  at  Gebal,  a  native  musician  of  some  note  was  favoring 
the  people  with  his  performances,  and  I  took  advantage  of  the  oppor- 
tunity to  increase  my  stock  of  knowledge.  He  was  evidently  in 
partnership  with  a  coffee-seller,  who  had  a  little  dark  cellar  near  the 
oastle ;  for  while  the  audience  enjoyed  the  music  they  were  naturally 


FIDDLER   AND   HIS   FIDDLE.  145 

stimulated  to  buy  tobacco  and  coffee.  I  stumbled  on  the  establish- 
ment one  morning,  and  was  so  entertained  thereby  as  to  return  to  it 
frequently.  It  was  rather  expensive  to  me ;  for  in  the  spirit  of  Ken- 
tucky hospitality  I  always  " treated  the  crowd"  with  cigarettes  and 
coffee,  and  this  involved  an  outlay,  sometimes  as  high  as  fifteen  or 
twenty  cents  for  the  lot.  But  I  didn't  begrudge  it.  It-was  a  real 
treat  to  watch  that  fellow  and  his  proceedings.  He  eat  on  an 
earthen  platform,  raised  about  four  feet  from  the  floor.  A  stool  was 
always  brought  for  me,  and  I  sat  facing  him.  The  rest  of  the  com- 
pany squatted  on  the  ground,  and  sipped  and  smoked  at  my  expense. 
Just  such  men  had  sat  and  sung  and  listened  here  ages  before 
Romulus  with  his  copper  plowshare  drew  the  boundaries  of  Eome, 

He  had  a  sort  of  fiddle  with  one  string.  But  such  a  string !  It 
was  an  inch  or  two  wide.  And  such  a  bow !  the  wooden  part  of  it 
like  an  ox-bow  ;  and  such  hairs  with  which  it  was  strung !  From  a 
donkey's  mane  and  tail  every  one  of  them ;  else  whence  the  hideous 
bray  that  fiddle  made  ?  The  man  had  one  eye,  front  teeth  missing,  a 
shirt  on — only  this  and  nothing  more.  On  his  knees,  as  he  sat,  lay 
an  Arabic  book,  folio,  on  which  his  blind  eye  was  steadily  fixed ; 
the  good  one  watching  me.  He  would  sing  a  minute  or  two  (I  shall 
describe  Arabic  music  in  future  chapters)  at  the  top  of  his  voice, 
until  he  turned  purple  in  the  face,  and  I  had  hopes  he  was  going  off 
into  an  epileptic  fit,  when  he  would  suddenly  stop,  smile,  and  rasp 
that  broad  string.  Then  my  hands  went  up  to  my  ears.  Then  I 
thought  of  all  the  bad  things  I  had  ever  done,  and  repented  of  them. 

Hassan  translated  for  me.  One  of  the  songs,  of  which  I  made 
notes,  I  found  afterwards  in  Brother  W.  K.  Alger's  poetical  version 
of  Eastern  poems.*  He  gives  it  thus — but  I  must  say  it  didn't 
sound  at  all  like  it : 

My  God  once  mixed  a  harsh  cup,  for  me  to  drink  from  it, 

And  it  was  full  of  acrid  bitterness  intensest ; 

The  black  and  nauseating  draught  did  make  me  shrink  from  it, 

And  cry,  "  0  Thou  who  every  draught  alike  dispensest, 

This  cup  of  anguish  sore,  bid  me  not  to  quaff  of  it, 

Or  pour  away  the  dregs  and  the  deadliest  half  of  it !  " 

But  still  the  cup  He  held ;  and  seeing  He  ordained  it, 

One  glance  at  Him,  it  turned  to  sweetness  as  I  drained  it ! 

*  The  news  that  comes  to  me  in  November,  1871,  that  this  amiable  gentleman  and 
marvellous  scholar  has  gone  deranged  through  excessive  study,  has  excited  th« 
sympathies  of  a  great  circle  of  friends  and  brethren. 

10 


146  CEMETERY    OF   GEBAL. 

The  subjects  selected  were  more  usually  amatory,  and,  I  suspect, 
from  the  leering  and  sensuous  smiles  of  Hassan  and  the  other 
auditors,  were  such  as  a  married  man  ought  not  to  hear.  Yet  this  is 
characteristic  of  Eastern  verse,  and  the  dirty  sans-culotte  who  thus 
afforded  merriment  connected  us  by  a  simple  tie  with  El  Mamoun 
and  the  Pyramid  of  Cheops  on  the  one  hand,  and  Haroun-ul- 
Raschid  and  his  Nights'  Entertainment  on  the  other.  For  El 
Mamoun  was  the  son  and  (unworthy)  successor  of  Aaron  the  Great 
(Haronn-al-Raschid). 

I  spent  a  good  many  hours  in  the  old  Church  of  St  George,  to 
which  I  have  before  alluded.  When  I  explore  one  of  these  ancient 
churches,  I  am  affected  by  the  thought  that  it  presents  a  parallel 
to  the  Scriptures  in  this:  the  thought  it  embodies  is  divine,  though 
the  materials  of  which  it  is  composed  are  of  the  coarsest,  only  stone 
*nd  wood,  fastened  together  with  lime  and  iron.  So  the  material 
facts  making  up  the  inspired  narrative  are  but  commonplace,  but  the 
theory  is  divine. 

In  this  venerable  fane  have  stood  the  feet  of  Godfrey,  first  King 
of  Jerusalem;  he  who  "increased  the  glory  of  his  people  when  like 
a  giant  he  put  on  his  arms  for  the  fight ;"  and  Tancred,  and  Gerard 
the  Crusader,  who  chose  rather  to  die  than  inflict  dishonor  on  the  holy 
cause  he  professed.  Glory  gilds  their  sepulchres  and  embalms  their 
memories.  Into  this  church  has  entered  Salah-ed-deen  (Saladin), 
chief  of  the  Saracens  (born  at  Takreet,  on  the  Tigris,  A.D.  1137),  of 
whose  death-dealing  arm  we  shall  read  when  we  come  to  the  field  of 
slaughter,  Hattin— fatal  Friday  of  July,  1187,  never  to  be  oblitera- 
ted on  the  page  of  history. 

The  cemetery  of  Gebal  was  right  under  my  windows.  In  the 
middle  of  it  was  a  small  summer-house  which,  at  certain  hours  of 
the  day,  was  thronged  with  women,  who  have  a  practice  here  of 
praying  by  the  graves  of  husbands,  parents,  children  and  friends.  In 
one  sense  the  custom  works  well ;  for  they  always  wear  clean  white 
clothes  in  the  graveyard,  and  really  look  handsome  at  a  distance. 
One  evening,  about  sundown,  I  was  hurrying  to  dinner,  and  found 
my  pathway  through  the  cemetery  blocked  up  by  these  mourning 
women.  It  is  considered  bad  manners  for  a  man  to  interrupt  women 
in  the  graveyard.  In  fact,  they  throw  stones  at  you  if  you  do.  And 
there  they  "sot  and  sot,"  entirely  enveloped  in  their  concealing  gar- 
ments, occupying  all  the  eligible  hollows  and  shady  places,  until  it 
became  almost  dark.  The  ordinary  dress  of  the  women  has  much  in 


MY   GEBAL    LANDLORD.  147 

common  with  that  of  the  men;  a  dirty  white  tunic  (vulgarly  called 
shirt)  bound  round  with  a  leathern  girdle,  somewhat  in  the  style  of 
our  Patron-Saint  John  the  Baptist.  I  was  glad  when  they  left  and 
I  could  proceed  to  my  dinner. 

I  remarked  before,  that  I  boarded,  or,  rather,  hired  a  room,  while 
in  Gebal,  of  some  Maronite  priests.  This  was  in  the  second  story  of 
the  house,  the  lower  being  the  stables.  A  large  wooden  door  opened 
from  the  street.  No  house  in  the  Holy  Land  has  more  than  one 
door.  A  heavy  iron  knocker  adorned  that  door.  When  I  wanted  to 
enter,  I  struck  the  knocker  three  times.  One  of  the  priests,  generally 
Father  Yusef,  or  his  assistant  Latoof,  "looked  out  of  the  window" 
(as  Jezebel  did  at  Jezreel,  2  Kings  ix.  30),  and  seeing  who  it  was, 
pulled  a  cord  which  lifted  a  heavy  wooden  latch,  and  then,  with  some 
muscular  effort  and  fearful  squeaking  of  hinges,  I  pushed  the  gate 
open,  mounted  the  stone  stairs  to  the  top  of  the  house,  first  story, 
and  so  entered  my  room. 

The  private  room  of  my  landlord  was  furnished  scantily  enough. 
I  looked  in  upon  him  one  morning',  and  saw  three  old  presses,  a 
lamp,  a  small  box,  and  the  mat  on  which  Father  Yusef  sat,  reading 
his  breviary  and  keeping  time  by  the  motion  of  his  body  and  the 
droning  of  his  voice. 

My  host  had  a  visitor,  a  reverend  old  gentleman,  with  voluble 
tongue  and  winning  behavior,  who  used  to  show  me  through  the 
bazaars  and  persuade  me  to  buy  things.  But  I  discovered  he  was 
allowed  his  little  commission  on  my  purchases,  and  so  confined 
myself  to  a  few  pounds  of  the  tobacco  for  which  Gebal  has  been 
famous  ever  since  tobacco  was  introduced  here,  a  few  centuries  back. 
These  Oriental  bazaars  shall  have  full  description  in  future  chapters. 
I  saw  in  this  one  an  old  man  wrapped  in  a  coarse,  tattered  garment, 
sitting  on  the  ground,  with  a  bushel  of  dirty  wheat  lying  on  a  fine  cloth 
before  him,  selling  it  by  the  gallon.  Close  by  him  women  were 
seated,  one  with  a  few  oranges,  another  having  a  small  quantity  of 
rice,  etc.,  etc. 

The  variety  sold  in  these  miscellaneous  collections  of  shanties 
called  bazaars,  is  something  remarkable;  cotton  and  silk  clothes; 
beef,  mutton,  fish,  and  eggs;  poultry,  skinny,  small  and  cbeap ; 
quinces,  pomegranates,  apricots,  figs,  raisins,  olives,  grapes,  and  other 
fruit ;  domestic  utensils ; — the  list  is  as  long  as  my  arm. 

I  bought  of  a  man  here  a  simple,  plain  cross,  cut  in  marble,  per 
haps  marking  the  resting-place  of  some  early  disciple  of  the  Crucified 


14g  REFRESHING   MEMORIES. 

One.  Also,  a  fragment  of  an  elegant  statuette,  a  faumis,  in  Parian 
marble^  exquisitely  wrought  Both  these  rare  objects  were  burned 
three  years  afterward  in  the  great  fire  at  Chicago. 

It  is  a  charming  memory  of  Gebal,  of  the  evenings,  about  sundown, 
when  I  was  accustomed  to  walk  alone  around  the  old  Ph<Eni- 
cian  harbor.  The  sound  of  a  convent-bell  high  up  in  Lebanon 
sometimes  affected  me  to  tears.  The  sea,  smooth  as  the  clearest 
mirror;  the  sun  descending  magnificently  into  it;  the  evening  star, 
goon  follow'ed  by  the  whole  host  of  the  heavenly  lights,  and  a  glorious 
night  breaking  in  around  me.  I  can  never  forget  it.  The  sea-line 
here  presents  a  constant  succession  of  novelties.  Now  a  jelly-fish, 
strangely  out  of  its  element,  and  soon  to  be  swallowed  by  the  gulls 
as  one  would  gulp  down  a  mouthful  of  Uanc-mange.  Now  the  jaws 
of  a  shark,  not  very  large,  but  so  abundantly  supplied  with  teeth 
that  I  sawed  my  riding-stick  through  upon  one  of  them  in  a  jiffy ; 
even  as  Talus  performed  that  exploit  with  the  jaws  of  a  serpent,  and 
was  so  pleased  with  the  experiment  that  he  kept  trying  until  he  in- 
vented the  first  iron  saw.  Now  an  oyster-shell  (the  ostrea  edulis), 
but  what  business  it  has  here,  is  more  than  I  can  describe.  Cer- 
tainly, I  had  no  idea  that  the  Baltimore  oyster  lives  near  Gebal. 
On  one  occasion  I  found  the  dead  body  of  that  enemy  of  flocks  and 
herds,  that  gourmand  of  the  flesh  of  asses,  that  eater  of  grain  when 
meat  cannot  be  had,  the  hyena.  On  another  occasion  the  waves  were 
rolling,  foaming,  and  breaking  in  the  most  beautiful  and  majestic 
manner,  the  creamy  mass  of  foam  tossed  by  the  sparkling  waves,  as 
again  and  again  they  roll  majestically  in  to  the  shore,  rapidly  push- 
ing each  other,  and  riding  over  each  other  in  merry  play  like  the 
sea-gods  of  old  gambolling  among  the  isles  of  the  JEgean.  The  world 
retires  with  its  noisy  discords,  its  poor  shows,  its  empty  glories,  aud 
gives  way  to  the  solemnity  of  the  seas  constantly  doing  their  work. 

It  was  a  constant  source  of  interest  to  me  to  watch  the  fishermen 
who  stood,  naked,  a  little  ways  in  the  sea,  or  on  a  jutting  column. 
Of  one  I  made  this  note :  his  net  is  gathered  on  his  left  arm,  crooked, 
cleared  and  prepared  for  a  throw  with  one  turn  of  his  right  hand. 
Taking  advantage  of  the  ripples  made  by  the  wind,  the  sun  throwing 
a  shadow  behind  him,  he  runs  along  the  shore  until  he  sees  a  school 
of  fish.  Then,  noiselessly  and  with  much  dexterity,  he  makes  hia 
throw.  The  net  opens  aud  spreads  as  it  goes,  so  that  a  bag  that 
could  be  compressed  in  my  hat  covers  a  space  of  twenty-five  feet  in 
circumference.  I  have  not  time  to  learn  the  art,  but  think  I  could 


PAGES   FROM   MY    DIARY.  149 

do  it  with  practice.  This  labor  promotes  meditation,  as  old  Izaak 
Walton  so  often  acknowledged,  and  this  may  be  seen,  perhaps,  by  a 
shrewd  discerner,  in  the  character  of  Peter,  James,  John,  and  those 
other  "  fishers  of  men,"  born  on  the  shores  of  Galilee. 

I  made  hundreds  of  notes  under  the  excitement  of  the  moment, 
some  worthy  of  record,  though  not  to  be  dovetailed  with  connected 
subjects.  I  append  a  page  or  two. 

Of  the  jackals  I  write,  late  one  night,  getting  up,  lighting  a  candle, 
and  fumbling  for  my  pencil  expressly  to  do  so;  that  my  slumbers  on 
that  stony  couch  were  disturbed  by  the  jackals,  whose  dismal  howl- 
ings  rent  the  air,  seeming  to  threaten  me  with  a  penalty  for  intrud- 
ing on  their  ancient  dominion.  From  a  hilly  knob  just  above  the 
town  I  write :  it  is  a  stirring  scene — the  gazelles  playing  in  the  valleys, 
partridges  running  up  the  hillsides,  along  these  territories  of  the  old 
Phoenician — 

Whose  iron  arm  did  make  the  mighty  world 
A  reach  of  beauty,  and  subdued  the  wave. 

Of  a  sarcophagus,  elegantly  carved,  I  quote : 

"  Faith,  with  her  torch  beside,  and  little  cupids 
Dropping  upon  an  urn  their  marble  tears." — Southey. 

Of  the  boys  in  the  bazaars,  I  say,  they  prove  themselves  apt 
scholars.  One  of  them  has  learned  a  compound  English  oath  of  four 
hundred  horse-power,  which  none  but  a  sailor  could  have  taught 
him,  and  hard  enough  to  raise  the  sheet-anchor  without  a  windlass ; 
another  one  repeated  to  me  an  expression  so  obscene,  that  I  was  glad 
to  believe  he  himself  didn't  know  what  it  meant.  Some  tourists 
delight  to  corrupt  these  unsophisticated  youth.  Of  the  effect  of  the 
sunlight  upon  this  cretaceous  stone  and  soil,  I  say,  I  soon  had  to 
stop  looking  for  specimens  after  10  A.  M.,  the  glare  of  "  the  sun  waxed 
hot "  upon  the  calcareous  rock  seeming  almost  to  blear  my  eyeballs. 
No  wonder  these  people  have  weak  eyes.  Our  missionary  friends 
down  there  at  Beyrout,  in  printing  books  for  them,  use  a  type 
extremely  large ;  anything  smaller  than  four-line  pica  fails  to  serve 
them  without  glasses.  I  notice,  when  I  show  these  people  my 
pocket  Bible,  they  scarcely  distinguish  the  letters.  The  natives 
suppose  every  American  to  be  a  hakeem  (doctor),  and  a  very  little 
surgical  and  medical  skill  makes  the  traveller  extremely  useful  to 
them.  As  the  Giblites  know  I  am  a  Doctor  (not  M.D.,  but  how  should 
they  appreciate  the  difference  ?)  they  often  came  to  me  with  their 
wants.  All  I  could  do,  however,  was  to  look  serious,  feel  the  pulse, 
and  divide  my  piece  of  ginger-root  with  them.  Even  for  this  they 
seemed  thankful,  always  acknowledging  my  kindness  by  the  tender 


150  PAGES   FROM    MY   DIABT. 

word  backsheesh.    Amongst  the  flowers  most  common  here  1  note 
the  cyclamen,  and  recall  the  lines — 

*Tis  cyclamen  I  choose  to  give, 
Whose  pale  white  blossoms  at  the  tips 

(All  else  as  driven  snow)  are  pink, 
And  mind  me  of  my  true  love's  lips. 

*  *  *  *  *  * 

Old,  kept,  and  kissed,  it  does  not  lose, 
As  other  flowers,  the  hues  they  wear; 

Love  is  triumphant,  and  this  bloom 
Will  never  whiten  for  despair. 

Rather  it  deepens  as  it  lies, 

This  flower  that  purples  when  it  dies. 

Of  the  uncounted  mass  of  art-treasures,  fragmentary  and  heaped 
np  on  every  hand,  I  say:  these  elegant  mouldings,  cornices,  and  en- 
tablatures are  thrown  together  with  common  stone  to  make  walls  for 
the  fields.  In  giving  my  measurements  of  distances,  etc.,  it  is  well  to 
compare  the  standards  used  at  different  times  in  this  country,  with 
our  own : 

The  Roman  mile  was 0.710  of  a  geographical  mile. 

Arabic  mile 1.055  " 

Turkish  mile 0.689  " 

German  mile 4.000  " 

The  average  caravan  journey  with  camels  is  reckoned  at  about 
sixteen  miles  per  day ;  mules  make  about  eighteen  miles.  All  travel 
here  is  ordinarily  so  slow  that  the  dromedary  who  carries  the  mail 
at  the  rate  of  six  miles  an  hour,  and  the  blooded  Arabian  who  gallops 
one  hundred  a  day,  are  prodigies  in  comparison. 

The  sight  of  a  great  cavity  bored  in  the  monstrous  ashlar  in  the 

castle,  by  some  stupid  treasure-seeker,  recalls  Sveboda's  description 

of  a  similar  attempt  to  find  gold  and  silver,  by  boring  into  the  head 

the  stone  statue  at  Pergamos,  Asia  Minor,  under  the  belief  that  in 

te  centre  of  the  skull  is  a  rich  deposit.    The  fellow  who  did  it  hadn't 

much  in  the  centre  of  his  skull.    The  people  below  here  are  cutting 

i  planting  joints  of  sugar-cane.    The  Crusaders,  as  they  came  to 

ch,  in  1098,  first  ate  and  described  sugar-cane.     Afterwards 

became  so  fond  of  it  as  to  cultivate  the  plant  and  erect  large 

>r  grinding  and  purifying  it,  near  Jericho.     One  man,  to-day. 

a  plowing  with  two  little  oxen,  scarcely  larger  than  a  pair  of  year- 

m  Kentucky.    Numbers  of  camels  were  winding  down   the 

itam-side  laden  with  squared  stones  for  buildings  at  Bevrout 

.  liusan  says  the  camel  here  is  worth  from  $100  to  $125  for  a  goo'd  one. 

JL^SS  8U?!?  ^  l  **  ridin&  cost  him  twewty  napoleons— 

The  old  Roman  road,  running  north  of  Jimia  Bay,  still 

iows  the  ruts  worn  into  it  by  Roman  chariots  in  the  days  of  the 

mpire.    A  wheelbarrow  couldn't  now  be  trundled  over  it  without 


PAGES    FROM   MY    DIARY. 


151 


danger  to  the  wheel.  The  town  of  Junia  is  beautifully  located, 
and  I  do  not  wonder  the  rich  citizens  of  Beyrout  like  to  reside  here 
in  warm  weather.  A  mile  north  of  it  is  a  place  of  romantic  interest. 
A  cave,  partly  artificial,  is  in  the  hillside,  about  three  hundred  feet 
from  the  beach,  traces  of  an  arch  inclosing  it  with  faint  lines  around 
the  top;  the  thundering  roar  of  the  breakers  making  its  walls  quiver; 
the  blue  and  grand  sea,  with  four  sail- vessels  in  sight ;  an  ancient 
ruin  crowning  a  high  point  near  by ;  a  palm-tree  on  another  eminence ; 
the  magnificent  Lebanon  in  the  rear;  the  interminable  line  of  tele- 
graphic wire  connecting  this  retired  nook  with  the  outer  world ; — 
why  was  I  not  an  artist  ? 

To-day  I  first  saw  that  the  ancient  custom  of  hauling  the  coasting 
vessels  on  the  shore  for  repairs,  or  for  wintering  and  storms,  is  still 
kept  up.  A  number  of  them  were  thus  disposed  of  a  few  miles  from 
Gebal,  in  a  sheltered  cove,  where  the  workmen  were  calking  and 
repairing  them.  On  a  coast  like  this,  where  no  docks  can  be  built, 
such  a  method  is  indispensable. 

I  watched  the  exercises  of  the  soldiers  here  to-day,  particularly  in 
the  Manual  of  Arms,  which  they  went  through  well  enough.  Could 
they  have  kept  their  eyes  off  me,  they  would  have  done  better ;  but 
every  time  the  drill-master  rested  for  an  instant,  one  hundred  and 
fifty  pairs  of  eyes  made  me  their  focus.  As  I  saw  they  wanted  me  to 
smile  in  token  of  approbation,  1  smiled  every  time.  This  made  the 
lance-corporal  so  happy  that  he  snickered,  and  got  a  cut  for  it  from 
the  drill-master's  ratan,  and  good  enough  for  him.  As  I  saw  the 
drill-master  wanted  an  excuse  to  speak  to  me,  I  offered  him  one  of 
Hassan's  cigarettes  (I  don't  smoke  myself),  and  it  would  have 
shocked  old  Baron  Steuben  to  see  how  quick  he  (the  drill-master) 
lighted  it  and  commenced  smoking,  while  one  hundred  and  fifty 
mouths  watered  to  do  the  like.  I  told  him  to  invite  the  soldiers  to 
coffee  at  my  expense,  which  he  did,  at  an  outlay  to  me  of  a  tr-fle  less 
than  a  dollar  (6  mills  a  cup,  for  150  cups,  is  how  much  ?) 


SILVER   PENNY   OF   TIBERIUS. 


PAPYRUS  IN   LAKE  HULEH. 


THE  FIG. 


DIVISION  FOURTH -LEBANON. 


As  Lebanon's  small  mountain-flood 
Is  rendered  holy  by  the  ranks 
Of  sainted  cedars  on  its  banks. 

Like  a  glory,  the  broad  sun 

Hangs  o'er  sainted  Lebanon, 
Whose  head  in  wintry  grandeur  towers, 

And  whitens  with  eternal  sleet, 
While  summer  in  a  vale  of  flowers 

Is  sleeping  rosy  at  his  feet. 

Lifting  their  dreamy  tops  far  into  the  heavens,  there  seems  to  be  a  conscioui 
majesty  about  them  :  keeping  ward  and  watch  over  the  world  below,  they 
stand, 

Like  earth's  gigantic  sentinels 

Discoursing  in  the  skies. 

How  calm,  how  beautiful  comes  on 
The  stilly  hour  when  storms  are  gone. 

Palestine  sits,  as  represented  in  the  well-known  coin  of  Vespasian,  desolate, 
robbed,  and  spoiled,  a  widow  amidst  the  graves  of  husband,  children,  and 

friends. 

« 

And  the  trees,  once  so  numerous  that  everybody  in  the  land  had  heard  of  them, 
and  almost  every  one  had  seen  them,  are  now  so  few  that,  as  Isaiah  predicted 
(x.  19),  a  child  may  count  them. 

Lebancn  is  ashamed  and  hewn  down  (Isaiah  xxxiii.  9). 


CHAPTER  X. 

CLIMBING   UP  LEBANON". 

HE  third  of  the  S*ren  Urand  Masonic  Localities,  according 
to  my  system,  is  Mount  Lebanon,  the  site  of  the  cedars. 
First,  I  took  my  readers  to  Tyre,  whence  came  the  Pillar 
of  Strength,  King  Hiram,  and  his  multitude  of  skilled 
employes,  to  whom  the  work  of  temple-building  was  famil- 
iar. Second,  I  led  them  to  Gebal,  the  seat  of  the  Schools  of  Architec- 
ture, whence  came  out  that  wisest  of  ancient  Builders,  Hiram  Abif. 
In  the  present  division  I  shall  discuss  Lebanon,  the  source  of  the 
cedar-trees,  of  which  such  large  quantities  were  used  by  King  Solo- 
mon, not  only  for  the  construction  of  the  Temple,  but  for  his  palace 
in  Zion,  in  which  this  material  was  so  largely  employed  that  the 
edifice  was  called  "  the  house  of  the  forest  of  Lebanon."  Following 
the  order  already  commenced,  the  reader  may  expect  to  be  conducted 
successively  to  the  bay  in  which  the  cedars  were  gathered  into  rafts 
("flotes") ;  to  Joppa,  where  they  were  drawn  ashore  for  land-ship- 
ment ;  to  the  clay-grounds  in  the  plain  of  Jordan,  where  the  foundries 
were  established,  and  finally  to  Jerusalem,  where  everything  was  con- 
summated, both  in  operative  and  speculative  Masonry.  Until  within  a 
few  years,  it  was  thought  that  the  only  remains  of  the  once  abun- 
dant forests  of  cedars  that  crowned  the  caps  of  Lebanon,  in  its  entire 
range,  were  at  a  point  about  three  days'  journey  northeast  of  Beyrout, 
and  nearly  due  east  of  Tripoli.  It  was  there  that  travellers  sought 
them,  and  many  a  glowing  account  of  their  immense  trunks,  their 
lofty  tops  and  spreading  foliage,  has  been  transmitted  to  us  through 
travellers'  journals.  There  are  about  five  hundred  trees,  great  and 
small,  in  the  grove  at  that  place,  on  the  head-waters  of  the  Kadisha 
(the  Sacred  River),  that  flows  into  the  Mediterranean  Sea  near  Tripoli 
Latterly,  however,  large  groves  of  the  same  trees  have  been  dis- 
covered, particularly  one  within  a  day's  journey  of  Beyrout.  The 
trees  here,  though  not  quite  so  large  as  the  others,  are  of  the  same 


BEGINNING   A   STAGE-RIDE.  157 

species  of  cedar,  viz.,  the  Cedrus  Libani,  or  Pinus  Cedrus,  as 
another  botanist  styles  it,  and  amply  repays  the  visit  of  the  tourist. 
I  started  from  Beyrout  to  see  them,  April  25th,  in  company  with 
Brother  Samuel  Hallock,  and  propose  now  to  make  report  of  my 
journey. 

The  way  out  of  Beyrout  is  by  the  French  turnpike  towards  Da- 
mascus. This  I  followed  for  twenty-five  and  a  half  French  miles,  equal 
to  about  eighteen  of  ours.  It  is  an  excellent  road,  perfectly  smooth, 
ascending  the  whole  way  in  a  romantic  serpentine,  in  which  the 
traveller  is  never  out  of  sight  of  the  sea.  The  thick  groves  of  olive 
and  mulberry  trees  around  Beyrout,  with  the  heavy  snow-banks  that 
crown  the  mountain-tops  before  you,  and  the  increasing  coolness  of 
the  breeze,  afford  delightful  sensations.  Some  of  these  valleys  around 
which  the  road  winds,  are  deep  and  impressive,  while  the  variety  of 
travellers,  the  cultivated  terraces,  and  the  thousand  novelties  of  which 
one  never  gets  weary,  take  away  from  the  monotony  of  ordinary 
travel,  and  give  a  delightful  zest  to  the  undertaking. 

To  give  an  accurate  account  of  travel  upon  these  mountains,  I  in- 
sert here,  as  the  most  fitting  place,  a  description  of  my  stage-ride,  a 
month  earlier,  from  Beyrout  to  Damascus.  There  is  only  one  stage- 
line  in  all  Syria  and  Palestine,  and  for  this  good  reason,  only  one  road 
on  which  a  stage  could  travel.  Wheels  are  a  superfluity  here ;  legs 
have  the  monopoly.  Over  this  one  stage-road  I  passed,  March  26th, 
1868,  on  my  journey  from  Beyrout  to  Damascus.  The  road  is  110 
French  miles  in  length  (equal  to  about  seventy-five  American  miles) 
and  is  passed  over  in  fourteen  hours ;  the  way,  of  course,  being  ex- 
tremely mountainous.  The  stage  (or,  as  termed  here,  diligence,  pro- 
nounced dily-zhonce)  starts  for  Beyrout  at  4  A.M.,  and  arrives  at  Da- 
mascus at  6  P.M.  I  arise  at  3  A.M.,  being  called  by  my  host,  Brother 
Hallock,  who  has  insured  his  own  waking  up  by  the  primitive  process 
of  sitting  up  all  night;  get  a  good  cup  of  coffee  and  a  bite,  and  go, 
followed  by  his  faithful  servant  Asaph  (pronounced  Hasaf,  accent  on 
the  last  syllable),  down  to  the  stage-office,  lantern  in  hand.  A  per- 
son in  any  Oriental  city  caught  out  after  dark  without  a  lantern  goes 
to  prison,  or  only  avoids  that  penalty  by  a  heavy  backsheesh  to  the 
officer  who  arrests  him.  As  we  walk  down  the  narrow  lanes  (which 
are  over-honored  by  being  called  streets)  the  only  living  objects  met 
by  us  are  the  police  (who  are  soldiers  carrying  muskets,  so  very  useful 
a  weapon  in  the  dark !)  and  the  dogs.  The  latter,  having  no  owners, 
lie  out  at  nights  and  bark  at  all  who  approach  them. 


j58  YELLAH!  TELLAH!  TELLAH! 

The  stage-office  is  a  room  twelve  feet  by  eight,  in  which  the  baggage 
is  weighed.  I  am  allowed  a  weight  of  ten  okes  (whatever  that  means), 
and  as  mine  weighed  eleven  I  pay  a  piaster  and  a  half  (nine  cents) 
extra  for  that  My  stage-fare,  101  piasters,  is  equal  to  about  $4.00  in 
our  currency.  At  this  season  the  stage  is  so  much  in  demand  by 
travellers  that  seats  must  be  engaged  several  days  in  advance.  Seven 
mules,  three  abreast,  draw  the  diligence.  Seats  are  arranged  in  four 
compartments,  and  tickets  sold  accordingly.  The  lower  story  is  di- 
vided into  two  rooms.  On  top  there  is  a  seat  for  four  immediately 
behind  the  driver,  and  a  place  still  further  back  among  the  baggage 
where  a  dozen  or  more  can  sit,  uncomfortably.  The  whole  diligence 
is  nearly  as  large  and  quite  as  heavy  as  an  ordinarily  sized  Masonic 
lodge-room  in  the  United  States.  My  seat  is  on  deck,  beside  the 
driver,  the  pleasantest  berth  of  all,  and  cheaper  than  in  the  lower 
cabin.  The  front  room  below  is  occupied  by  a  Syrian,  his  wife,  ser- 
vant, and  child ;  the  back  room  by  a  Turk  with  his  hareem.  By  the 
way,  I  got  a  sight  at  the  women  at  breakfast-time,  but  am  not  tempted 
to  a  second  peep.  Pale,  sickly,  and  faded,  like  bundles  of  old  pinks 
—that  is  about  the  way  they  look,  to  me. 

The  seven  mules  are  started  by  the  driver  coming  down  in  his  seat 
with  a  concussion  like  a  heavy  rock,  and  screaming  out  in  French 
"  heep."  If  that  word  has  the  same  effect  upon  horses  accustomed 
to  the  English  language,  I  recommend  my  readers  to  try  it;  it  will 
stimulate  into  motion  even  the  most  obdurate.  Our  seven  quadru- 
peds go  off  like  a  shot ;  the  assistant  driver,  whose  business  it  is  to 
manage  the  brakes,  shouts  yellah,  yellah,  at  the  top  of  his  voice. 
This  word,  I  am  told,  was  originally  intended  as  blasphemy,  but  in 
modern  parlance  it  only  means  go  ahead. 

YELLAH  I  right  through  the  public  square,  where  in  the  day-time 
all  manner  of  professions  are  followed,  from  trading  horses  to  cheat- 
ing us  Franks  in  the  purchase  of  antiques. 

YELLAH  !  into  a  narrow  lane  and  up  a  hill,  with  the  tail-end  of  the 
constellation  Scorpio  right  before  me,  as  I  peer  over  the  driver's  head 
upon  the  morning  sky  beyond. 

YELLAH  !  past  the  stonecutters'  shops  where  yesterday  I  saw  the 
descendants  of  the  ancient  "Giblites"  at  their  devices,  each  one 
squatted  upon  his  hams  in  true  Oriental  style. 

YELLAH  !  past  the  office  of  the  American  Consul,  the  kind  and 
gentlemanly  Mr.  J.  A.  Johnson,  his  national  coat-of-arms  appearing 
faintly  over  the  gate,  near  which  all  day  sits  his  military  guard, 
cword  in  hand,  as  becomes  the  armed  defender  of  so  great  a  nation. 


ENGINEERING    OVER    LEBANON.  159 

YELLAH!  past  the  dwellings  of  Beyrout's  aristocracy,  each  with  ita 
verandas  with  galleries,  and  queer  eyelet  holes,  its  orange-groves  in 
the  trickling  grounds  of  water  from  the  fountains  in  the  court. 

YELLAH  !  past  the  big  sycamore  trees  holding  their  great  limbs 
horizontally  out,  each  strong  enough  for  a  dozen  of  Zaccheus. 

YELLAH  !  past  the  last  military  station  on  the  borders  of  the  city, 
ind  along  the  lanes  lined  with  the  great  cactus-leaves,  faithful  to 
their  trust  as  any  lodge-tyler,  and  through  the  interminable  mulberry 
groves  with  which  the  suburbs  of  Beyrout  are  planted. 

YELLAH  !  past  the  three  palm-trees  on  the  left  and  the  two  on  the 
right,  and  skirting  the  forest  of  pine-trees  planted  here  centuries  ago 
by  the  great  Fakah-ad-din,  and  past  those  carob-trees,  reminding  me 
of  the  Prodigal  Son,  and  through  more  lanes  of  the  prickly-pear  and 
past  more  palm-trees  and  more  sycamores,  and  now  at  the  foot  of  the 
mountains,  we  address  ourselves,  about  5  A.M.,  to  the  ascent  of  Leb- 
anon. 

Let  me  read  a  Biblical  passage ;  it  is  good  to  go  up  the  sides  of 
Lebanon  with  the  "Word  of  God  in  one's  mouth :  "  The  glory  of  Leb- 
anon shall  come  unto  thee,  the  fir-tree,  the  pine-tree  and  the  box 
together  to  sanctify  the  place  of  my  sanctuary;  and  I  will  make  the 
place  of  my  feet  glorious."  And  shall  I  this  day  in  good  truth  pass 
over  Lebanon  ?  Forty-five  years  ago  I  read  that  passage  in  Isaiah, 
when  a  little  boy  at  my  mother's  knee. 

"At  last  ;  all  things  come  round  at  last ! " 

The  French  engineers  did  their  work  well  in  building  this  road. 
Its  grade  is  nowhere  (except  in  one  place)  more  than  the  ordinary 
road-level  of  a  good  highway,  though  to  get  over  the  range,  which  is 
some  8,000  feet  in  altitude,  the  task  is  a  serious  one.  The  road,  in 
fact,  winds  like  a  serpent,  often  returning  almost  into  itself,  and 
traversing  a  mile  of  length  to  gain  a  quarter  in  height.  A  mile- 
stone (of  French  measure)  is  set  for  every  mile.  A  telegraph-line, 
with  two  wires,  accompanies  it  in  the  main,  but  often  leaves  it  for 
a  while,  to  gain  the  short  cuts.  Lightning,  I  discover,  can  go  up  hill 
by  a  steeper  grade  than  the  most  diligent  diligence.  In  three  hours 
we  have  attained  to  the  twenty-fifth  milestone.  By  this  time  the 
toiling  world  has  fully  commenced  its  day's  work,  and  we  are  meeting 
it  in  endless  variety.  First  an  old  man  driving  his  loaded  donkey; 
then  a  cavalcade  of  mules  heavily  laden  ;  then  a  lot  of  camels  piled 
up  with  rawhides;  then  a  long  succession  of  covered  wagons  be- 
longing to  the  telegraph  company,  each  drawn  by  three  mules  tan- 


jgQ  LOOKING   BACK. 

dem.  We  change  our  own  team  every  hour,  usually  putting  on  six 
horses  or  mules,  sometimes  only  five,  in  one  instance  eight,  accord- 
ing  to  the  character  of  the  grade.  At  the  stations  all  the  Arabs  of 
the  vicinity  gather  in,  and  every  one  helps,  with  tongue  and  hands, 
to  shout  and  fasten  the  rope-harness  used  in  this  country.  The 
horses  are  in  general  miserable,  worn-out,  half-fed  beasts ;  the  mules 

look  better. 

At  the  foot  of  the  mountain  I  had  observed  the  snowy  top  in 
advance,  apparently  quite  near ;  but  it  was  not  until  nearly  nine 
o'clock,  and  I  had  come  thirty  miles,  that  I  reached  it.  Snow  has 
fallen  enormously  deep  up  here,  and  even  now  the  banks  are  very 
thick,  and  the  snow  so  hard  as  to  bear  the  weight  of  a  horse.  No 
wonder  it  is  so  cold  here  as  to  require  gloves,  overcoats,  and  wrappers, 
although  at  Beyrout  it  was  too  warm  for  any  of  them. 

About  daylight  we  see  a  jackal  sneaking  into  a  ravine  from  his 
dirty  deeds  of  darkness.  He  reminds  me  for  all  the  world  of  a 
prairie-wolf. 

Looking  up  the  mountain-flanks,  all  seems  desolate  and  unculti- 
vated ;  but,  looking  backwards  from  this  height,  what  a  mistake ! 
every  square  rod  of  ground  is  cultivated,  mulberry-trees,  fig-trees,  olive- 
trees,  etc.,  by  millions  striking  their  roots  into  this  soil,  the  latter 
especially  "  sucking  oil  from  the  flinty  rock,"  as  the  Scriptures  figure 
it.  The  picture  is  the  reverse  of  the  locust  image ;  for,  as  you  ascend 
the  mountain,  before  you  seems  the  desert,  behind  you  the  garden. 
Grain  is  shooting  greenly  from  every  flat,  and  promising  its  owners 
an  hundredfold.  Tis  curioug,  however,  to  ask  where  these  people 
livt-,  for  while  surveying  a  vast  area  of  cultivated  land  you  don't  see 
a  single  house.  The  reason,  however,  is,  that  the  houses  are  built  of 
stone,  with  flat  roofs  covered  with  earth,  on  which,  at  this  season, 
grass  is  thickly  growing.  They  are  not  distinguishable  to  the  eye  for 
want  of  chimney -smoke,  windows,  etc.,  etc.,  as  in  our  country. 

By  nine  o'clock  I  am  nearly  at  the"  top,  after  five  hours  of  steady 
climbing.  What  a  magnificent  valley  is  this  on  my  left!  grand 
indeed ;  and  here  the  fig-tree  takes  the  place  of  the  mulberry.  The 
two  classes  are  easily  distinguished  from  each  other,  as  the  mulberry 
is  always  pollarded  and  trained  to  a  few  horizontal  limbs  near  the 
ground,  being  raised  only  for  the  leaves. 

Now  the  driver  and  his  assistant  eat  their  breakfast ;  nothing  but  a 
few  of  the  thin,  black,  heavy,  unleavened  cakes,  which  is  the  native 
bread.  No  meat,  no  cheese,  no  drink  of  any  kind;  cheap  boarding!. 


DINNER   IN   C^ELO-SYRIA.  161 

The  culverts  on  this  road  are  of  splendid  mason-work.  The  heavy 
torrents  of  these  mountains  demand  the  strongest  kind  of  conduits 
to  resist  their  erasive  power.  An  immense  machine,  made  to  press 
the  surface  of  the  road  into  compactness,  meets  me. 

We  pass  the  crown  of  the  mountain  about  half-past  nine;  here 
eight  horses  are  scarcely  able  to  drag  us  up,  with  two  assistants 
to  run  along  and  whip  them.  Great  crowds  of  travellers.  An 
officer  with  thirty  foot-soldiers,  all  in  gay  spirits.  Camels,  horses, 
donkeys,  and  mules.  No  private  conveyances  are  met  on  this  road. 

Going  down  Lebanon.  Good  gracious,  what  speed !  ten  miles  in 
forty  minutes.  Full  gallop,  and  everybody  bawling  yellali  at  the 
top  of  his  voice.  It  quite  takes  my  breath  away  to  look  out  from  my 
elevated  seat  in  the  parquette.  In  meeting  the  loaded  animals  their 
conductors  have  great  difficulty  in  dragging,  pushing,  and  cursing 
them  out  of  the  way.  These  Arabs  do  cuss  amazingly.  One  poor 
donkey,  staggering  under  a  load  of  sacks  that  almost  concealed 
him,  was  knocked  endwise  by  our  carriage  over  the  parapet,  and, 
for  aught  I  know,  may  be  rolling  down  Mount  Lebanon  yet.  The 
assistant,  however,  holds  the  handle  of  our  brakes,  and  so  regulates 
the  motion  that  we  arrive  safely  in  the  valley  of  the  Bukaa,  the 
ancient  "  Coelosyria,"  a  magnificent  prairie-plain,  from  ten  to  fifteen 
miles  wide,  of  the  richest  soil,  all  in  cultivation.  Here,  at  the  stage- 
barn,  I  get  my  "dej'euner,"  or  breakfast,  for  which  I  pay  twelve 
piasters  (they  call  them  herrish  ;  five  of  them  maKe  a  French  franc). 
It  was  worth  it.  The  courses  were  fish,  stewed  meat,  fried  meat, 
oranges  from  the  Sidon  gardens,  Lebanon  figs,  small  but  excellent, 
the  large  walnuts  (what  we  call  English  walnuts),  wine  of  the  best, 
and  coffee.  A  half-hour  to  eat  it  in.  No  other  passengers  partake, 
they  having  basketsfull  of  their  own. 

Here  in  Coelosyria  I  hope  to  catch  a  glimpse  of  Mount  Hermon, 
which  lies  under  the  sun  from  my  position,  and  about  forty  miles  off. 
'•  As  the  dew  of  Hermon  and  as  the  dew  that  descended  upon  the 
mountains  of  Zion ;"  how  often  have  I  read  that  passage  and  longed 
to  cast  my  eyes  upon  that  memorable  height.  But  I  look  in  vain,  nor 
in  all  the  day's  ride  can  I  feast  my  vision  upon  it. 

YELLAH  !  a  caravan  of  camels,  to  which  the  sight  of  a  stage-coach 
drawn  by  six  horses  is  a  novelty.  They  are  greatly  disturbed  at  our 
appearance.  They  twist  their  long  curly  necks  in  every  direction,  as 
if  to  find  a  retired  spot  for  escape,  and  with  difficulty  are  made  to 
obey  their  masters'  voices  and  keep  the  road. 

11 


HJ2  SONGS   OF  THE   PASSENGERS. 

A  company  of  gentlemen,  mounted  on  splendid  Arabian  Lorsea 
Their  saddles  are  gayly  decorated  with  yellow  tasselling ;  their  large 
shovel-stirrups  ring  out  a  merry  music ;  their  riders  are  proud  to  put 
them  to  their  paces.  Everybody  here  rides  with  short  stiirup- 
leuthcrs,  which  do  not  add  to  equestrian  gracefulness. 

The  women  whom  I  meet  are  generally  barefoot,  and  carry  thei»- 
shoes  in  their  hands ;  their  lords  shuffle  along,  however,  with  all  the 
dignity  of  slippers.  Both  sexes  have  their  legs  bare  to  a  height  that 
I  dare  not  measure  with  the  eye.  These  women  trudging  over 
the  highways  of  Lebanon  are  about  as  good-looking  as  Indian 
squaws  of  the  squaw-class.  Five  out  of  six  of  them  have  children  in 
their  arms. 

One  of  the  Syrians,  who  has  his  family  in  the  "  coupee,"  conies  up 
and  sits  by  my  side.  He  sings  for  an  hour  in  the  monotonous  style 
usual  in  this  country,  and  of  which  no  language  of  mine  can  afford 
the  slightest  idea.  Mostly  an  entire  song  is  limited  to  three  full 
tones,  with  its  accompanying  semitones.  It  abounds  in  shakes, 
in  which  a  particular  syllable  is  made  to  do  service  for  a  whole  bar 
or  more  of  each.  I  don't  understand  the  words,  and  I  don't  want  to. 
It  is  the  very  infancy  of  music,  such  as  would  occupy  a  child  at  the 
very  earliest  age  when  melody  attracts  his  mind.  Accompanied,  as 
it  sometimes  is,  by  an  instrument  of  one  string,  played  upon  by  a 
bow,  and  capable  of  only  three  notes,  these  Arabs  will  continue  it  in 
a  long,  drawling,  melancholy  monotone  for  half  the  night.  My 
Syrian  evidently  enjoys  his  own  gifts,  and  so  do  the  driver  and 
assistant,  who  occasionally  pitch  in,  in  a  sort  of  chorus,  but  all  sing- 
ing the  same  notes,  either  in  unison  or  in  octaves.  Considered  as 
music  it  is  fearful. 

People  here  smoke  all  the  time  when  not  compelled  by  some  urgent 
necessity  to  intermit  the  amusement  In  travelling  they  smoke 
cigarettes,  occupying  their  valuable  time  in  making  one  while  they 
are  smoking  another.  The  tobacco  is  about  the  average  strength  of 
dried  cabbage-leaves ;  and  as  much  annoyed  as  I  am  when  people  puff 
tobacco-smoke  into  my  face,  I  can  really  scarcely  tell  now  when  this 
millet-flavored  weed  is  consuming  around  me.  Everybody  carries 
eigarette  papers  and  a  box  of  matches.  At  home  they  smoke  the 
narghikh,  in  which  the  smoke  is  drawn  through  cold  water,  still 
niv.ru  reducing  its  strength  of  nicotine,  and  rendering  the  habit  less 
Were  it  not  that  I  have  been  so  loud  in  denouncing  the 
usi;  of  tobacco  all  my  life,  I  might  even  use  a  narghikh  ("hubble- 


OLD-FASHIONED   PLOWING.  16J 

bubble,"  as  the  machine  is  called)  myself.     But  there  is  nothing  like 
consistency. 

Leaving  my  breakfast-place,  where  I  had  been  studying  the  Scrip- 
tural image  of  "  the  sparrow  on  the  house-tops,"  away  we  go  at  a 
gallop  through  Coelosyria.  We  cross  the  memorable  Eiver  Litany 
{which  I  shall  see  again  near  the  city  of  Tyre  ere  long),  upon  a 
wooden  bridge  with  iron  railings.  What  would  the  mighty  conquer- 
ors of  antiquity  think  of  that  ?  Meet  the  western-bound  stage  from 
Damascus  at  11  A.M.,  full  of  passengers.  Foreign  travellers  this  year 
very  numerous.  This  is  at  the  forty-seventh  milestone.  People 
plowing  on  every  side,  generally  with  two  heifers  yoked  together. 
The  plow  is  a  crooked  stick,  forked,  the  short  end  having  an  iron 
•coulter.  One  hand  of  the  plowman  holds  the  end  of  the  stick,  the 
other  prods  the  poor  little  cows  along  at  the  rate  of  a  mile  an  hour. 
Such  caricature  of  plowing !  The  wheat  and  barley  not  advanced 
here  as  in  the  valley  of  the  Mediterranean,  which  indeed  is  very 
much  lower,  and  consequently  warmer. 

Opposite  milestone  No.  53,  pass  a  "tell,"  or  hill,  such  as  often 
occurs  in  Scripture  history.  It  is  black  with  browsing  goats.  This 
magnificent  plain  is  a  very  garden  of  the  Lord's  own  spreading  forth ; 
•but  with  such  want  of  agricultural  skill  it  yields  scanty  returns.  Oh 
for  a  colony  of  good  American  or  European  farmers,  with  cattle,  and 
implements  of  modern  make!  I  observe  that  the  skirts  of  the 
Lebanon  mountains  that  slope  towards  this  beautiful  valley  are  not 
terraced  or  cultivated  at  all. 

Near  the  east  end  of  the  valley  is  another  "tell,"  green  with  spring- 
ing grain.  Near  it  is  a  Mohammedan  wely  or  tomb,  as  I  should 
guess  from  its  appearance.  The  streams  that  run  along  this  valley 
are  all  full  to  overflowing  from  the  melting  snows  in  the  heights 
-above. 

At  the  sixtieth  milestone,  at  noon,  we  begin  to  rise  the  mountains 
of  anti-Lebanon,  nothing  like  so  high  or  steep  as  the  other,  yet  high 
enough,  and  wanting  in  all  the  beautiful  terrace-cultivation,  etc.,  of 
^>he  forepart  of  the  day.  For  four  hours  we  scarcely  meet  a  person, 
or  observe  any  signs  of  human  life,  save  the  numerous  laborers  on  the 
road,  and  one  little  town  on  the  left.  I  forgot  to  mention  several 
crowds  of  English  and  American  tourists,  hurrying  to  Beyrout  to 
•catch  the  steamer  of  Sunday  next.  The  Oriental  lives  of  these 
amiable  and  helpless  beings  is  divided  into  two  anxious  parts,  one  tc 
•get  to  a  place,  and  the  other  to  get  away.  These  folks  got  to  Damas- 


164  ORCHARDS  OF  APRICOT  AND   PEACH. 

cuu,  a  hundred  of  them,  night  before  last  All  day  yesterday  they 
epent  in  contriving  the  means  to  get  away  from  there  this  morning- 
They  pay  fabulous  sums  of  money  to  accomplish  these  two  objects, 
and  when  they  get  home  all  they  can  with  truth  tell,  as  the  reward 
of  their  travels,  is  the  dust,  the  lies,  the  swindles,  the  fatigues,  and  the 
great  expenses  of  their  tours.  I  shall  grin  with  fiendish  look  for  the 
rest  of  my  life  when  I  hear  them  talk  of  their  travels.  Travel  enough 
they  have,  in  all  conscience,  but  all  that  they  see  except  vanity  and 
vexation  can  be  put  into  a  pomegranate-seed. 

At  the  change  of  horses  at  milestone  85,  I  walked  on  ahead  for 
a  .half-hour.  Saw  an  enormous  lizard,  out-lizarding  everything  I 
had  conceived  of  in  the  lizard  line.  Saw  an  old-fashioned  home, 
which  a  family  had  established  for  itself  by  setting  up  thorns  round 
the  mouth  of  a  cave.  It  is  the  "camel-thorn,"  so  called,  and  a 
terrible  thorn  indeed.  Here,  too,  I  first  observed  the  basaltic  rock  of 
this  range,  black,  metallic,  and  sonorous  when  struck.  The  bright 
crimson  anemone  waves  in  charming  contrast  with  it. 

Ten  miles  further,  and  I  am  approaching  Damascus,  called  by  the 
French  "  Damas,"  without  the  ens,  and  by  the  natives,  "  Es  Shems." 
Here  the  fence-walls,  out-buildings,  and  finally  the  buildings  them- 
selves, begin  to  be  made  of  clay-bricks,  cut  out  about  four  feet  square,, 
dried  in  the  sun  and  set  upon  their  edges.  These  are  the  adobes  of 
the  Mexican  people,  and,  I  am  told,  make  quite  durable  material  for 
building  purposes ;  certainly  they  are  cheap. 

Crows  in  great  abundance  are  calling  to  each  other,  in  the  purest 
crow-English,  just  such  as  I  remember  from  a  boy.  If  a  certain  dis- 
tinguished Iowa  gentleman  were  here,  he  could  sing  his  "  crow  song," 
and  be  respected. 

Vast  apricot  and  peach  orchards  in  full  bloom.  Fig-trees  in  abun- 
dance. No  more  prickly-pears.  The  sycamore-trees  gigantic.  A  straight 
wet-land  tree  in  close  clusters.  Another  jackal  creeps  up  the  hill,. 
followed  by  the  curses,  both  loud  and  deep,  of  the  driver.  I  don't 
know  enough  of  the  language  to  inquire  why  he  is  so  down  on  the 
jackal :  probably  his  folks  have  been  foully  dealt  with  by  them. 

At  105th  milestone  we  begin  to  strike  the  River  Barada,  one  of 
those  lovely  streams  of  which  the  proud  Naaman  declared  "  it  is  better 
than  all  the  waters  of  Israel."  I  think  so  too.  Filled  to  overflowing 
from  the  mountains  in  which  it  rises,  it  pours  through  its  narrow 
Channel  brim-full,  and  we  follow  it  clear  down  to  Damascus,  now 
crossing  it  upon  a  wide-constructed  bridge  of  French  masonry ;  anon 


INTELLIGENCE    OF   HORSES.  165 

galloping  along  its  beautiful  banks  under  the  shadows  of  these  dense 
orchards ;  now  leaving  it  for  a  short  distance  to  take  advantage  of 
some  short  cut;  now  pressing  closely  upon  it,  almost  into  its  waters, 
so  narrow  is  the  glen  through  which  it  flows ;  thus  we  go  at  head- 
long speed,  until  the  river  Barada  and  our  stage-coach  burst  forth 
together  intc  the  plain  of  Damascus,  the  oldest  city  in  the  world ; 
the  city  of  Abraham  and  Elisha  and  Paul ;  the  beautiful  gem  where 
two  of  Mohammed's  daughters  lie  interred ;  the  gateway  to  the  road 
to  Palmyra ;  the  object  of  one  of  my  life-long  dreams — Damascus. 

At  the  point  where  I  left  the  turnpike,  I  engraved,  on  the  surface 
of  a  large,  smooth  stone  on  the  left-hand  side  of  the  way,  the  device 
of  the  Square  and  Compass.  The  extreme  hardness  of  this  material, 
so  long  exposed  to  the  weather,  made  the  task  a  painful  one  to  wrist- 
muscle,  and  explains  the  perfect  preservation  of  such  monuments  as 
Hiram's  tomb,  the  great  inclosing  wall  of  Mount  Moriah,  the  Foun- 
tains of  Solomon  at  Etham,  and  others. 

Leaving  the  turnpike,  the  change  to  a  Lebanon  bridle-way  is  at  once 
painfully  evident.  You  begin  to  descend  a  hill  so  steep  that  you  invol- 
untarily stop  and  look  around  to  see  that  the  road  before  you  has  no 
been  abandoned.  At  first  sight  it  resembles  those  deep  gullies  some 
times  observed  in  our  own  country,  washed  out  by  wintry  storms 
from  a  forsaken  road.  Finding  that  there  is  no  other  way,  you  get 
down  and  attempt  to  lead  your  horse.  But  a  Syrian  horse  is  accus- 
tomed to  be  ridden  or  driven,  not  led.  If  you  are  alone,  there  is  no 
other  remedy  but  to  remount  and  let  the  animal  bear  you  down  the 
hill  at  his  own  discretion.  Here  the  peculiar  training  of  the  horse  is 
seen  in  the  perfect  caution  and  safety  with  which  he  does  his  work. 
Teetering  from  rock  to  rock,  springing  up  a  long  step,  dropping 
•down  on  two  feet  at  a  time  when  the  descent  is  too  great  for  one, 
placing  his  feet  successively  into  crevices  barely  large  enough  for 
them,  and  taking  the  worst  places  he  comes  to  so  cheerfully  as  to 
show  he  is  accustomed  to  it,  the  horse  soon  brings  you  to  the  foot  of 
the  first  hill,  and  prepares  to  mount  the  second.  That  day's  journey 
gave  me  a  new  idea  of  the  intelligence  of  a  Syrian  horse.  Sometimes 
we  rounded  the  sides  of  precipices  so  high  and  steep  that  I  was  fain 
to  shut  my  eyes  in  dismay.  Sometimes  we  meandered  among  gigan- 
tic masses  of  rocks  shaken  from  the  mountains  by  some  old  earth- 
quakes. Sometimes  we  crossed  stone  bridges  so  narrow  and 
rough  that  nothing  but  the  peculiar  construction  of  the  horse's  shoea 
(made  to  cover  the  whole  foot)  prevented  him  from  slipping.  Finally ' 


106  PATHS  TORTUOUS  AND   FATIGUING. 

we  arrived  at  the  village  of  Ain-Zehalteh  and  closed  our  first  day's 

stage. 

A  few  memorandums  that  I  made  on  the  point  of  a  precipice  will 
come  in  very  well  here.  If  the  reader  could  only  see  how  my  hair 
stood  on  end  with  fright  while  writing  them,  the  picture  would  be 
complete. 

The  experience  of  a  ride  up  Lebanon  is  something  never  to  be 
forgotten.  Roads  tortuous  and  rocky,  over  a  country  wild  of 
aspect,  stony  and  wooded ;  roads  winding  to  all  points  of  the  compass, 
up  and  down  among  the  hills ;  roads  rocky  and  bad,  with  many  twist- 
ings  up  and  down,  but  romantic  and  picturesque ;  hardly  prudent  to 
remain  on  horseback,  as  the  precipices  are  frightful,  and  the  risk  of 
rolling  over  with  the  horse  is  imminent ;  as  the  Latins  used  to  say,  a 
fronte  precipitum,  a  tergo  lupus,  the  cliff  before  and  the  wolf  behind  j 
ways  very  narrow,  one  side  dropping  down  upon  high,  perpendicular 
rocks,  the  other  an  inaccessible  wall ;  mutum  est  pictura  poema,  it 
is  a  poem  without  words;  paths  tortuous  and  fatiguing;  a  frightful 
mountain-pass ;  the  crest  of  a  steep  hill  in  the  midst  of  a  wilderness 
of  rugged  ravines  and  impracticable  crags ;  a  bitter,  sharp,  cold  wind 
sweeping  down  from  the  snow-clad  heights  of  Lebanon;  going  high 
up  where  "  the  hay  withers  away,  the  grass  fails,  and  there  is  no  green 
thing  "  (Isaiah  xv.  6) ;  past  beds  of  iron-stone,  recalling  the  "  one  hun- 
dred thousand  talents  of  iron  "  (1  Chron.  xxix.  7)  which  Israel  gave 
for  the  service  of  the  house  of  the  Lord;  toiling  far  beyond  my 
strength  until  "my  face  did  wax  pale"  (Isaiah  xxix.  22) ; 
Where  the  summits  glitter  with  streaks  of  snow, 
And  the  villages  crown  the  knobs  below4 

bare  and  stony,  cut  by  every  rain.  A  hill  that  none  but  man  can 
climb,  covered  with  a  hundred  wintry  water-courses.  "  A  lowly  vale, 
low  as  the  hill  is  high,"  where  the  hardy  pine-tree  thrusts  its  roots 
deep  into  the  rocky  side  of  the  mountain ;  this  is  the pinus  allapenses 
of  the  botanist  "As  when  the  winter  streams  rush  down  the  mountain 
sides  and  fill  below,  with  their  swift  waters,  ptfured  from  gushing 
springs,  some  hollow  vale."  Here  rises  the  Damoor,  which  I  crossed  the 
other  day  going  from  Beyrout  to  Sidon,  and  not  far  from  here  the 
Owely.  My  view  from  this  point  suggested  a  thousand  passages- 
referring  to  height  It  seemed  if  I  was  on  "  the  highest  part  of  the 
dust  of  the  earlh  "  (Proverbs  viii.  26) ;  when  the  Lord  of  hosts  lopped 
^the  bough  with  terror,  and  the  high  ones  of  stature  were  hewn  down 
"with  iron,  and  Lebanon  fell  by  a  mighty  one  (Isaiah  x.  34). 


THE   PEOPLE    1    MEET.  16? 

In  the  destruction  of  Assyria,  even  Mt.  Lebanon  is  said  to  rejoice. 
One  of  the  finest  thoughts  in  Isaiah's  prophecies  (xiv.  8)  is  that  in 
which  the  mountain  that  had  been  widowed  of  its  noblest  trees  by 
Sennacherib  and  other  Assyrian  tyrants,  joins  in  the  cry  of  exulta- 
tion that  goes  up  to  heaven  at  the  downfall  of  the  kingdom. 

When  a  boy,  I  read  of  an  herb  growing  along  this  road  that  colors 
of  a  golden  hue  the  teeth  of  animals  that  browse  upon  it,  but  I  can 
find  nobody  here  who  ever  heard  of  it. 

The  men  living  among  these  crags  are  considerably  larger  and  far 
more  muscular  than  the  dwellers  in  the  plains.  Doubtless  it  was 
so  in  Hiram's  day,  and  the  work  of  cutting  and  removing  the  cedars 
was  intrusted  to  the  mountaineers.  Old  Sandys  remarked,  in  1610: 
"Perhaps  the  cause  of  their  strength  and  big  proportions  is  that 
they  are  bred  in  the  mountains ;  for  such  are  observed  to  oversize 
those  who  dwell  in  low  levels. "  At  the  interment  of  Past  Grand 
Master  Henry  Clay,  at  Lexington,  Kentucky,  in  1852,  a  company  of 
100  men  came  down  from  the  mountain,  riding  blood-horses.  Not 
a  man  in  the  company  was  less  than  six  feet,  and  their  average 
weight  was  240  Ibs. ! 

A  man  has  just  passed  me  with  yellow  slippers  and  red  shoes  over 
them.  His  sash  holds  his  pistols  and  sword.  He  has  a  long  vener- 
able beard,  a  thing  from  which  military  officers  and  soldiers  are  de- 
barred. These  regular  Turks  seem  to  me  generally  to  wear  a  light  and 
florid  complexion.  Scanning  this  man's  dress  I  observe,  what  other 
writers  have  remarked  before,  that  the  Turkish  dress  hides  all  deform- 
ities of  limb  and  person,  while  the  variety  of  color,  arms,  and  flowing 
beard,  naturally  divert  attention  from  close  examination  of  the 
features. 

Another  man  passes  us,  an  ill-favored,  slovenly  fellow,  of  whom  I 
inquire  what  part  of  these  mountains  no  man  can  pass  over.  The 
mountaineer  replies  that  he  can  go  up  or  down  any  wady  on  horse- 
back that  water  can  run  through ! 

A  female  school  recently  opened  here,  under  the  patronage  uf  the 
Protestant  Missions  of  the  country,  enabled  me  to  secure  pleasant 
accommodations  with  the  teachers.  They  gave  us  the  best  fare  at 
their  command,  spread  for  us  on  the  floor,  in  the  preacher's  room,, 
sufficient  bedding,  and  left  us  to  a  repose  needed  after  the  day's  ride. 
At  the  village  of  Ain-Zehalteh  there  is  an  old  fountain,  now  disused, 
which  has  a  pair  of  carved  leopards  on  it,  resembling  the  lions  gra- 
ven on  the  side  of  St.  Stephen's  Gate,  at  Jerusalem,  supposed  to  be 


Iftg  AT  THE  FOOT  OF  THE   CEDARS. 

remains  of  the  Crusaders'  period.  There  are  here,  also,  several  tomba 
of  that  singular  people,  the  Druses,  to  whose  particular  form  of  Free- 
masonry I  will  call  attention  in  a  subsequent  chapter. 

Early  the  next  morning  we  took  a  guide  and  started  for  the  cedars, 
which,  however,  were  in  plain  view,  standing  in  the  snow-drifts,  high 
up  on  the  mountain-side.  It  took  us  two  hours'  hard  riding  even  to 
the  foot  of  the  slopes  below  them.  Here  we  left  our  horses  and  made 
the  ascent  on  foot  This  is  thd  first  time  I  discovered  that  a  man's 
knees  at  fifty  are  not  the  same  machinery  as  at  thirty.  I  used  to 
be  noted  as  a  good  walker  and  climber;  but  that  piece  of  work  took 
the  conceit  out  of  me  forever  and  a  day.  We  mounted  mile  after 
mile.  We  passed  the  highest  barley-fields,  which  occupied  a  slope  of 
ground  almost  perpendicular.  We  passed  the  line  of  scarlet  pop- 
pies and  other  gay  flowers,  and  the  line  of  singing-birds,  and  finally 
the  line  of  vegetable  and  insect  life. 

The  mountain-air  revived  me  in  my  heat  and  fatigue,  as  I  stopped 
occasionally  to  look  back  and  enjoy  the  splendid  panorama  of  the 
Mediterranean  Sea  seen  from  Mount  Lebanon,  which  once  beheld 
can  never  be  forgotten.  Again  I  went  on,  with  tottering  knees,  and 
muscular  system  so  paralyzed  by  the  unwonted  strain  that  I  seemed 
to  have  no  control  over  it.  Looking  above  me,  the  cedars  appeared 
to  mock  my  desires,  and  withdraw  as  I  advanced.  Now  1  came  to 
the  line  of  the  snow-drifts,  across  which  the  winds  sobbed,  cold  as 
winter. 

At  last  I  reached  the  lowest,  and  as  it  proved,  the  largest  of  tin 
grove,  a  cedar-tree  fifteen  feet  in  circumference,  and  divided  sym- 
metrically into  four  noble  trunks.  Here  I  threw  myself  exhausted, 
and  devoted  the  first  hour  reflecting  upon  the  time,  place,  and 
occasion:  high  12 — Lebanon— visit  to  the  cedars!  While  recover- 
ing iny  breath  I  referred  to  some  of  the  authorities  concerning  these 
memorable  trees— such  as  these:  An  house  of  cedar  (2  Sam.  vii.  2). 
He  spake  of  trees,  from  the  cedar  (1  Kings  iv.  33).  The  thistle 
sent  to  the  cedars  (2  Kings  xiv.  9 ;  2  Chr.  xxv.  18).  Grow  like 
a  cedar  (Pa.  xcii.  12).  Beams  of  our  house  are  cedars  (Cant.  i.  17). 
Boards  of  cedar  (viii.  9).  Some  forty  other  references  may  be  traced 
through  the  concordance. 

The  particular  connections  between  the  cedars  and  the  mountains 

)evour  the  cedars  of  Lebanon  (Jud.  ix.  15).    The  cedars 

of  Lebanon  (Ps.  civ.  16).    Upon  all  the  cedars  of  Lebanon  (Is.  ii.  13). 

edars  of  Lebanon  rejoice  at  thee   (Is.  xiv.  8).    The  cedars  of 


THE  TALL  CEDARS  OF  LEBANON.  169 

Lebanon  to  make  masts  for  thee  (Ezekiel  xxvii.  5),  and  Tarious 
others. 

The  Hebrew  name  erez,  is  presen  ed  still  among  the  Arabs.  I  asked 
my  guide  the  name  of  the  tree  that  bent  so  grandly  over  me ;  and 
he  replied,  in  his  corrupt  vernacular,  arruz,  equivalent  in  good  Ara- 
bic to  arz.  The  word  is  applied  in  Scripture,  as  it  is  in  the  ver- 
nacular Arabic,  generally,  to  the  trees  of  the  pine  family,  but  especially 
to  the  cedar  of  Lebanon  (Cedrus  Libani).  The  cedar-tree  named 
in  Lev.  xiv.  4,  etc.,  was  probably  the  timber  of  a  fragrant  species  of 
juniper  growing  among  the  rocks  of  Sinai ;  but  in  most  of  the  Bib- 
lical references  this  tree  which  is  now  shading  me  is  doubtless  meant. 
Everywhere  the  symbolic  expressions  of  the  cedar  of  Lebanon  are 
lofty  and  grand :  it  is  the  glory  of  Lebanon,  the  tree  of  the  Lord, 
the  high  and  lifted  up,  etc.,  etc.  The  Amorite  in  his  arrogance 
and  the  Assyrian  in  his  greatness  were  compared  to  cedars.  It  is 
also  the  model  of  expansiveness.  The  constant  growth  of  the  right- 
eous man  is  described  under  this  similitude.  Its  fragrance  is  not 
overlooked  in  such  expressions  as  "the  smell  of  thy  garment  is  like 
the  smell  of  Lebanon."  The  cedar  was  the  prince  of  trees.  Every 
one  who  has  seen  it  amongst  the  snows  of  Lebanon  will  recognize 
the  force  of  the  glorious  and  majestic  imagery  of  the  prophets.  This 
great  monarch  of  twenty  or  thirty  centuries,  under  which  I  am  sit- 
ting, with  its  gnarled  and  contorted  stems  and  its  scaly  bark,  with 
massive  branches  spreading  their  foliage  rather* in  layers  than  in 
flakes,  with  its  dark-green  leaves,  fully  asserts  its  title,  Monarch  of 
the  Forests. 

Of  the  quality  of  the  wood  I  need  not  say  much ;  hundreds  of  my 
patrons  are  enabled  to  judge  of  that  for  themselves,  as  I  have  served 
good  specimens  to  them.  The  roof  of  the  Church  of  the  Nativity, 
at  Bethany,  is  made  of  it.  It  is  certainly  close  in  grain,  as  well 
as  dark  in  color.  The  King's  House  on  Mount  Zion  was  made 
of  it,  and  Solomon  used  it  very  largely  in  the  Temple,  as  well  as  in 
his  own  palace.  The  second  and  third  temples  were  equally  construct- 
ed of  cedar.  It  worked  well  in  carvings,  and  was  used  by  the 
Tyrian  shipwrights  for  their  masts.  In  the  days  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment writers,  the  whole  of  this  great  range  of  mountains,  probably, 
abounded  in  this  noble  tree,  now  so  scarce,  and  found  only  upon  spots 
nearly  inaccessible  to  visitors. 

I  am  here  just  on  the  level  of  Wyoming  Territory,  in  the  United 
States,  8,262  feet  above  the  sea-level,  and  will  quote  from  the  description 


170  SNOW-DRIFTS,  EOCKS,  AND   GRAVEL. 

of  a  traveller  there:  "For  nine  months  in  the  year,  the  sides  and 
summits  of  these  everlasting  hills  are  bedecked  with  the  greatest 
variety  and  the  grandest  display  of  flowers  that  ever  grew.  Gor- 
geously arrayed  in  countless  numbers,  they  present  every  color,  form, 
and  size.  The  higher  the  peak,  the  lighter  and  more  delicate  the 
colors;  at  the  very  loftiest  summits  grows  the  palmito  nivalis,  01 
snow-plant,  an  exquisite  gem  of  floral  beauty." 

Gradual  as  the  snow  at  Heaven's  breath 
Melts  off  and  shows  the  azure  flowers  beneath. 

The  view  of  the  great  mountain-eagle,  through  the  broad  spread- 
ing branches  of  the  cedars,  is  inspiring.  Serene  as  the  sublime 
untrodden  heights  around  him,  he  sails  alone  where  the  eye  of  man 
cannot  pierce,  and,  in  an  untroubled  atmosphere,  sees  the  lightnings 
leap  and  play,  and  hears  the  thunder  burst,  and  the  hurricane  roar 
far,  far  below  him.  Doubtless  the  prophet  Obadiah  was  regarding 
him  under  this  aspect  when  he  wrote,  "  Though  thou  exalt  thyself  as 
the  eagle,  and  though  thou  set  thy  nest  among  the  stars,  thence  will 
I  bring  thee  down,  saith  the  Lord  "  (i.  4). 

Ten  thousand  axe-men  are  now  (the  winter  of  1872)  chopping  pines 
in  the  forests  of  Michigan  alone,  and,  with  their  improved  steel  axes, 
every  blow  struck  must  be  equal  to  six  of  Hiram's  choppers,  using 
the  clumsy  copper  axes. 

The  throne  on  which  the  statue  of  Jupiter  Olympus  sat,  in  his 
statue  by  Phidias,«at  Athens,  was  made  of  cedar-wood,  adorned,  of 
course,  with  gold,  ivory,  ebony,  precious  stones,  and  colors. 

From  my  present  standpoint,  were  the  sun  setting  so  that  I  might 
have  the  full  benefit  of  his  light,  I  could  see  the  island  of  Cyprus, 
eighty  miles  in  the  northwest;  were  it  not  for  yonder  projecting 
point,  I  could  see  Sidon,  twenty  miles  nearly  in  the  west. 

After  a  good  rest,  my  companion  and  myself  left  our  overcoats  at 
the  foot  of  this  grand  old  cedar,  and  mounted  to  the  top  of  the  range, 
crossing  deep  snow-drifts,  piles  of  rocks,  loose  gravel-beds,  and  other 
i  ies  of  mountain  surface.  With  the  exception  of  a  few  pheas- 
ants or  partridges  that  whirred  out  of  a  pile  of  rocks  before  me,  and 
a  few  insects,  I  saw  no  signs  of  animated  nature,  and  a  few  speci- 
mens of  flowers  exhausted  the  botanical  exhibit.  The  view  from  the 
top  of  the  range,  which  is  here  about  8,000  feet  high,  is  extremely 
grand,  and  had  not  the  wind  been  blowing  so  excessively  cold,  I  should 
have  enjoyed  a  longer  tarry.  Villages  by  scores  and  hundreds  dot 
the  hill-si  ies  in  every  direction,  though,  at  so  great  a  distance,  nc 


TEEE   OF  THE'  CARDINAL   VIlvTUES.  171 

signs  of  inhabitants  can  be  detected,  save  a  single  plowman  far 
beneath  me,  who  is  turning  up  the  earth  between  two  snow-drifts, 
preparatory  to  sowing  his  late  barley.  How  he  has  managed  to  climb 
so  high  with  his  poor  little  cattle,  and  what  he  expects  to  raise  in 
this  mountain-zone,  I  cannot  tell. 

I  return  to  my  great  cedar,  which,  of  all  the  trees  around  me,  I  had 
chosen  to  be  my  Goliath  of  Gath,  the  very  one  which  Daniel  might  in 
spirit  have  seen  and  described  as  his  "  tree  in  the  midst  of  the  earth, 
and  the  height  thereof  great,  reaching  unto  heaven,  the  sight  thereof 
to  the  end  of  all  the  earth ;  the  leaves  fair,  the  beasts  of  the  field  hav- 
ing shadow  under  it,  and  the  fowls  of  heaven  dwelling  in  the  boughs 
thereof  (iv.  10).  Returning,  I  say,  to  this  tree,  I  named  it,  on  account 
of  its  four  prominent  divisions,  the  Tree  of  the  Four  Cardinal  Vir- 
tues. I  ate  heartily  of  the  victuals  we  had  prudently  provided 
before  leaving  Beyrout,  and  then,  snug  myself  in  a  nook  on  the  lee- 
ward-side of  the  tree,  and  call  up  in  succession  the  names  of  seven- 
teen persons  whom  I  have  reason  to  remember  with  gratitude  or 
kindness.  To  each  one  of  these  I  wrote  a  letter,  dated  "  On  Mount 
Lebanon,  April  26,  1868."  If  these  epistles  were  received  and  read 
with  half  the  pleasure  they  afforded  me  in  the  composition,  my  frozen 
hands  and  feet  and  general  discomforts  were  amply  compensated. 

To  the  four  great  divisions  of  this  tree,  shooting  its  branches  so 
magnificently  abroad,  after  carving  the*  Square  and  Compass  deftly 
upon  its  root,  I  apply  four  names  of  earth's  monarchs,  who  in  their 
day  did  not  deem  it  derogatory  to  their  greatness  to  patronize  the 
Masonic  assemblies,  viz. :  Frederick  the  Great,  of  Prussia ;  Napoleon 
the  Great,  of  France ;  the  present  Charles  XV.,  King  of  Sweden  ;  a"nd 
William,  present  Emperor  of  Germany. - 

The  number  of  trees  in  this  grove  is  probably  a  thousand,  mostly 
of  good  size,  but  none  of  them  tall  enough  to  furnish  a  mast  or  beam, 
still  less  good  boards.  From  all  of  them  the  Arabs  have  lopped  oif 
the  superfluous  branches,  and  indeed  so  many  others  as  to  give  the 
entire  grove  a  stumpy  appearance,  perhaps  not  natural  to  it.  Upon 
only  one  did  I  discover  any  cones,  those  large  and  handsome  seed- 
vessels,  so  much  sought  after  by  travellers ;  the  natives  had  doubtless 
gathered  the  best  for  fuel.  My  guide,  however,  afterwards  collected 
one  thousand  for  me,  and  sent  them  down  to  Beyrout.  With  these  I 
supplied  my  patrons,  as  valuable  additions  to  their  cabinets.  Of 
the  wooi,  I  secured  a  large  trunk  of  a  tree,  long  since  felled;  had  it 
rolled  down  the  mountain-side  the  day  following  my  departure,  cut 
in  two,  and  brought  to  me  on  the  back  of  a  camel. 


172  CEDAR-GROVE  ON   KADISHA. 

As  soon  as  this  grove  is  thoroughly  "  discovered,"  and  gets  intc 
Porter's  Hand-Book,  which  is  the  Bible  of  all  English-reading  tourists, 
it  will  take  no  time  at  all  to  people  it  with  legends.  Monks  will  conie 
here  and  build  their  shanties,  and  retail  their  shenanegan  around  it. 
Every  tree  will  have  its  name,  yes,  a  hundred  names ;  in  fact,  will  be 
carved  all  over  with  names.  From,  my  own  cognomen,  back  to  that 
of  Lamartine,  Willebald,  and— I  forget  the  list,  the  same  as  seen  in  the 
"Sacred  Grove,"  at  the  head  of  the  Kadisha — a  regular  itinerant 
directory,  worse  than  the  one  on  Cheops'  pyramid,  will  be  engraved 
here. 

The  extreme  cold  of  the  mountain-air  warned  me  away.  So,  after 
cutting  a  good  stick,  and  collecting  an  abundance  of  sprigs  and 
leaves,  and  waving  my  Masonic  flag  to  the  winds  of  Lebanon,  I  started 
upon  the  descent,  only  less  adventurous  and  even  more  tedious  than 
the  ascent.  My  very  knee-caps  twinge  now  with  the  remembrance 
as  I  write  of  that  slipping,  scrambling,  tumbling  journey  to  the  base 
of  Mount  Lebanon.  How  glad  I  was  to  have  the  relief  of  my  saddle 
I  need  not  say.  I  again  spent  the  night  at  Ain-Zehalteh,  surrounded 
with  the  dwarf  round-topped  pine  and  umbrageous  carob  (the  name 
means  "The  spring  that  has  moved"),  and  returned  next  day  to 
Beyrout,  highly  gratified  with  my  successful  and  invigorating  visit  to 
Lebanon. 

In  the  opening  of  this  article,  I  alluded  to  the  great  cedar-grove  at 
the  head  of  the  River  Kadisha.  Those  are  much  the  largest  speci- 
mens of  the  Cedrus  Libani  known  to  be  in  existence,  and  it  is  quite 
probable  that  some  of  them  even  antedate  the  time  of  the  Hirams. 
Pr&fessor  Tristam  says  of  them :  "  The  trees  are  not  too  close,  nor  are 
they  entirely  confined  to  the -grove.  Though  the  patriarchs  are  of 
enormous  growth,  they  are  no  higher  than  the  younger  trees,  many 
of  which  reach  a  circumference  of  eighteen  feet."  Dr.  Thompson 
says:  "  The  platform  where  the  cedars  stand  is  many  thousand  feet 
above  the  Mediterranean,  and  around  it  are  gathered  the  very  tallest 
and  grayest  heads  of  Lebanon.  The  forest  is  not  large,  not  more 
than  five  hundred  trees,  great  and  small,  grouped  irregularly  on  the 
sides  of  shallow  ravines,  which  mark  the  birthplace  of  the  Kadisha  or 
Holy  River.  Some  of  these  trees  have  been  struck  by  lightning,  or 
broken  by  enormous  loads  of  snow,  or  torn  to  fragments  by  tempests. 
Young  trees  are  constantly  springing  up  from  the  roots  of  old  ones. 
and  from  seeds  of  ripe  cones.  The  whole  of  the  upper  terrace  of 
Lebanon  might  again  be  covered  with  groves  of  those  noble  trees, 


SETTING    UP   A   MEMORIAL.  173 

and  furnish  timber  enough,  not  only  for  Solomon's  Temple  and  '  the 
house  of  the  forest  of  Lebanon,'  but  for  all  the  houses  along  this 
coast.  They  have  been  propagated  by  the  nut  or  seed  in  many  parts 
of  Europe,  and  it  is  said  there  are  more  of  them  now  within  fifty 
miles  of  London  than  on  all  Lebanon." 

It  is  said  also  that  these  groves  of  cedar  east  of  Ain-Zehalteh,  which  I 
have  just  visited,  could,  a  few  years  ago,  boast  of  their  ten  thousand 
cedars ;  but  the  sheikh  sold  them  to  a  native,  who  cut  them  down  for 
pitch.  Vigorous  young  plants,  however,  are  springing  up  on  every  side ; 
one  stump  has  been  measured  which  was  thirteen  feet  in  diameter. 
I  can  only  say  that  the  largest  tree  /  found  there  was  but  five  feet  in 
diameter  (fifteen  in  circumference).  The  so-called  California  pine, 
thirty  feet  in  diameter,  a  branch  that  springs  out  at  a  height  of  fifty 
feet  being  six  feet  in  diameter,  is  of  course  a  much  larger  tree  than 
any  of  these. 

And  now  for  a  few  desultory  passages  from  my  diary : 

Sitting  under  this  "Tree  of  the  Four  Cardinal  Virtues,"  let  me 
summon  up  one  of  that  cloud  of  witnesses  who  found  the  cedar  a 
worthy  type  of  inspired  truth,  he  who  noted  the  rush  of  the  workmen 
that  poured  up  these  slopes  at  the  command  of  Hiram  to  cut  the 
great  trees.  Jeremiah :  "  When  I  prophesied  of  the  hosts  who 
should  swarm  under  Nebuchadnezzar  to  destroy  Jerusalem,  I  said, 
They  shall  inarch  with  an  army,  and  come  against  her  with  axes,  as 
hewers  of  wood.  They  shall  cut  down  her  forest"  (xlvi.  22).  Seeing 
how  few  and  comparatively  dwarfish  these  are,  as  compared  with  the 
size  and  abundance  of  the  cedar  forests  in  olden  time,  we  see  the 
force  of  Isaiah's  expression  (ii.  12) :  "  The  day  of  the  Lord  is  upon 
all  the  cedars  of  Lebanon  that  are  high  and  lifted  up."  Down  at 
Bethlehem,  a  hundred  miles  southward,  the  rows  of  unpainted  beams 
in  the  old  church  acknowledge  this  forest  as  their  source.  An  old 
pilgrim  who  was  here  A.D.  1322.  wrote  that  cedar-trees  grow  very 
high  in  these  hills  and  produce  apples  as  great  as  a  man's  head. 
This  was,  of  course,  what  we  commonly  style  cones. 

As  Joshua,  when  he  had  waxed  old  and  was  stricken  in  age,  called 
all  Israel  together  at  Shechem  (B.C.  1427),  and  made  a  covenant 
with  them,  and  recounted  all  that  God  had  done  for  them  since  the 
call  of  Abraham  (B.C.  1921),  nearly  five  centuries  before;  and  then 
"  took  a  great  stone  and  set  it  up  there  under  an  oak,"  and  made  it 
a  witness  unto  them,  "lest  they  should  deny  their  God"  (Joshua 
xxiii. — xxv.)  so  let  me  set  this  rude  ashlar  on  its  end,  and  grate- 
fully recount  what  God  has  done  for  me  since  I  left  my  native  land 


J74  FROM   LEBANON   TO   MORI  AH. 

two  months  ago.  At  Ain-Zehalteh,  I  'remarked  that  nothing  is  sc 
painful  among  these  grand  historic  mountains  as  to  see  the  degrada- 
tion of  the  women  of  the  Lebanon  villages.  Descending  from  the 
steeps  in  lengthened  files,  with  heavy  loads  of  wood  upon  their  heads, 
bending  under  burdens  which  their  weak  frames  can  ill  sustain — here 
are  the  women  of  the  Koran.  It  is  humiliating  to  be  the  object  of 
their  silly  stare  and  rude  laughter,  and  compelled  to  witness  their 
unseemly  deportment,  clothed  as  they  are  in  filthy,  coarse,  and  scanty 
garb. 

A  generation  back,  the  Druse  women  of  Lebanon  wore  the  tantura, 
or  silver  horn,  often  two  feet  in  length,  fastened  to  the  forehead  by 
a  strong  cushion,  and  supporting  a  white  veil  which  concealed  the  face. 
Assumed  at  her  marriage,  she  never  laid  this  aside  until  prepared  for 
the  grave.  But  this  strange  and  characteristic  ornament  is  now  dis- 
pensed with.  As  I  do  not  know  why  they  wore  it,  neither  can  I 
explain  why  they  have  discontinued  it.  The  horses  i  meet  are  lean 
and  poor  in  flesh,  but  sinewy  and  patient  of  labor.  Their  nimble- 
ness  at  a  stumble  is  only  inferior  to  a  goat's.  Evidently  they  are  accus- 
tomed, when  stepping  on  a  stone,  to  calculate  on  its  rolling,  and 
govern  themselves  accordingly.  The  incalculable  quantities  of  cedar 
transported  by  the  mariners  of  King  Hiram,  from  Lebanon  to 
Jerusalem,  contrast  so  widely  with  the  scanty  yield  of  the  present  day, 
that  the  reader  is  almost  tempted  to  suggest  an  exaggeration  in  the 
figures.  Yet,  as  late  as  1837,  the  Pasha  of  Egypt  sent  to  these  same 
mountains  with  an  order  for  1,052,000  trees  of  different  sorts.  Of 
these,  70,000  were  required  to  be  thirty-five  feet  long  and  eight  inches 
square ;  the  rest  smaller.  Year  by  year  from  that  time  from  50.000 
to  60,000  trees  were  shipped  thence  to  Egypt  From  the  vicinity  of 
Alexandrette  they  furnish  yellow  pine  and  other  sticks,  of  the  follow- 
ing dimensions : 

Yellow  pine,  80  feet  long,  18  to  20  inches  square. 
Green  pine,    20        «          9  inches  square. 
Beech,  35        "         15  « 

Linden,          50        "         27  " 

The  allusions  to  the  use  of  the  Lebanon  cedar  in  the  construction 

Solomon's  various  works  are  frequent.    The  same  appear  in  the 

Zerubbabol  constructions,  500  years  later.    In  2  Samuel  vii.  2,  David 

says  to  the  prophet  Nathan:  "I  dwell  in  an  house  of  cedar,"  and  he 

asked  leave  to  build  "an  house  of  cedar"  for  Divine  worship.     Tin 


GREAT   WORK    OF  TRANSPORTATION.  175 

material  for  his  palace  had  beeu  secured  through  the  friendship  of  the 
King  of  Phoenicia,  the  same  who  was  afterwards  so  munificent  to  Solo- 
mon. To  facilitate  the  work  of  constructing  a  temple,  which  was  re- 
served for  his  son  Solomon,  he  collected  "  cedar  trees  in  abundance  for 
the  Zidonians,  and  they  of  Tyre  brought  much  cedar  wood  to  David.*' 
The  cedars  of  Lebanon  are  ever  a  symbol  of  beauty,  loftiness,  and 
grandeur.  In  Psalm  civ.  16,  we  read :  "The  trees  of  the  Lord  are  full 
of  sap ;  the  cedars  of  Lebanon  which  He  hath  planted,  where  the 
birds  make  their  nests."  In  Isaiah  ii.  13 :  "  The  cedars  of  Lebanon 
are  high  and  lifted  up."  In  Ezekiel  xxvii.  5:  "They  have  taken 
cedars  of  Lebanon  to  make  masts  for  thee."  Many  other  references  of 
this  sort  may  be  found  in  the  Old  Testament  by  the  aid  of  a  con- 
cordance. 

In  the  construction  of  the  great  temple  upon  Mount  Moriah,  such 
quantities  of  cedar  were  used  as  surpass  all  computation.  The  labor 
necessary  to  fell  these  upon  the  high  mountains ;  to  bring  them  down 
6,000  to  8,000  feet  of  perpendicular  height,  through  frightful  passes 
and  down  giddy  chasms,  to  the  plain  ;  to  make  them  up  into  rafts  in 
the  coves  and  inlets  of  the  coast ;  to  float  them  seventy-five  miles 
along  the  shore;  to  draw  them,  water-sodden,  up  the  acclivity  at 
Joppa;  to  bear  them  by  land  thirty  or  forty  miles  across  the  country, 
ascending  some  2,600  feet  by  the  way ;  and,  when  arrived  at  Jerusa- 
lem, to  shape  them  into  the  various  uses  demanded  by  the  great 
builder — this  labor,  we  say,  was  truly  immense,  and  defies  calcula- 
tion. It  is,  indeed,  well  said  in  1  Kings  ix.  11,  that  "Hiram,  King 
of  Tyre,  had  furnished  Solomon  with  cedar- trees  according  to  all  his 
desire." 

In  two  minute  accounts  of  the  temple-building,  contained  in  1 
Kings  and  2  Chronicles,  are  seen  these  references  to  cedar  material : 
"He  covered  the  house  with  beams  and  boards  of  cedar; "  the  cham- 
bers, five  cubits  high  against  the  house,  "  rested  on  the  house  with 
timber  of  cedar ; "  "  He  built  the  walls  of  the  house  within  with 
boards  of  cedar ; "  "  He  built  twenty  cubits  on  the  sides  of  the  house, 
both  the  floor  and  the  walls,  with  boards  of  cedar ; "  "  The  cedar  of 
the  house  within  was  carved  with  knops  and  open  flowers ;  all  waa 
cedar ;  there  was  no  stone  seen ; "  the  altar  in  the  holy  place  was  of 
cedar,  covered  with  pure  gold. 

But  his  own  house,  on  Mount  Zion,  still  more  profusely  abounded 
with  this  costly  wood.  It  was,  indeed,  termed  "  the  house  of  the  for- 
est of  Lebanon,"  for  this  very  reason.  It  stood  "  upon  four  rows  of 


176  ZERUBBABEL  AND   HIS  CEDARS. 

cedar  pillars,  with  cedar  beams  upon  the  pillars,  and  it  was  cove-red 
with  cedar  above  upon  the  beams  that  lay  on  forty-five  pillars,  fif- 
teen in  a  row."  The  porch  of  judgment  "  was  covered  with  cedar 
from  one  side  of  the  floor  to  the  other."  To  sum  up  this  profusion 
in  a  few  words,  the  sacred  historian '  says  (1  Kings  x.  27):  "The 
King  made  cedars  to  be  as  the  sycamore  trees  that  are  in  the  vale  for 
abundance."  In  an  excellent  volume  by  Mrs.  Forbes,  lately  pub- 
lished, under  the  title  of  "  A  Woman's  First  Impressions  of  Europe," 
the  following  passage  occurs :  "  Down  the  long  vistas  of  the  park  of 
Warwick  Castle,  England,  stand  cedars  of  Lebanon,  stretching  their 
wide  branches  over  English  earth,  perhaps  brought  from  Palestine 
by  the  great  Earl  Guy  himself." 

In  the  re-construction  of  the  temple,  commenced  about  B.C.  535,  by 
Zerubbabel,  we' read  that  "they  gave  money, and  meat,  and  drink,  and 
oil  unto  them  of  Zidon,  and  to  them  of  Tyre,  to  bring  cedar  trees 
from  Lebanon  to  the  sea  of  Joppa,  according  to  the  grant  they  had 
of  Cyrus,  King  of  Persia."  The  same  thing  occurred  about  500 
years  later,  as  we  learn  from  the  writings  of  the  Jewish  historian 
Josephus,  when  Herod,  that  renowned  builder,  undertook  to  restore 
the  house  of  the  Lord,  which  was  by  that  time  greatly  decayed,  and 
procured,  through  the  Phoenicians,  who  then  possessed  the  defiles  of 
the  Lebanons,  the  needed  wood  for  the  reparation. 

A  very  large  number  of  American  Lodges  are  named  after  this 
mountain,  either  Lebanon,  Libanus,  or  Mount  Lebanon.  Among 
them  I  instance  No.  86,  Ky. ;  No.  26,  Ohio ;  No.  104,  La. ;  No.  46, 
Vt;  No  7,  D.  C.;  No.  59,  Tenn.;  No.  117,  N.  C.;  No.  191,  N.  Y. ; 
Xo.  104,  Md. ;  No.  229,  Ala. ;  No,  97,  Ark. ;  Nos.  32  and  49,  N.  H. ; 
No.  226,  Pa.;  No.  35,  Mass.,  etc.,  etc. 

As  names  appropriate  to  lay  upon  this  great  Masonic  locality,  the 
following  are  selected,  viz.:  Fred  Webber,  Stephen  Merrill,  L.  A. 
Foote,  Oliver  George,  Royal  G.  Millard,  J.  W.  Clayton,  Rev.  W.  H. 
Maki-any,  J.  C.  W.  Bailey,  Jacob  H.  Medairy,  M.D.,  and  William 
Mead. 


ANCIENT   ALTARS. 


GRAND    PORTAL   AT   BAALBEC. 

12 


GENTLEMEN   DINING. 


CHAPTER  XL 

BAALBEC   AND   PALMYRA. 

T  was  not  in  my  power  to  visit  Baalbec  and  Palmyra 
without  neglecting  more  important  interests.  I  am  there- 
fore chiefly  indebted  to  Brother  A.  L.  Rawson,  the  Oriental 
artist  and  scribe,  for  my  notes  upon  those  wonderful  (won- 
der full  /)  localities,  interesting  especially  to  the  Masonic 
antiquary,  because  doubtless  built  by  the  same  hands  whose  chisel- 
marks  are  found  to-day  indented  upon  the  walls  and  ashlars  in  the 
great  quarry  at  Jerusalem.  In  other  words,  the  remains  of  Baalbec 
and  Palmyra  are  covered  with  the  "Handmarks  of  Hiram's 
Builders ! " 

Baalbec,  or  Heliopolis,  the  City  of  the  Sun,  is  situated  about  thirty 
miles  to  the  left  of  the  route  between  Beyrout  and  Damascus,  de- 
scribed in  my  last  chapter.  It  is  usual  for  travellers  to  go  first  to 
Damascus  by  stage  ("  diligence,"  so  called  in  French,  because  an 
exceedingly  "slow  coach"),  and  there  hire  horses  and  servants,  with 
that  inevitable  and  dreadful  bore,  the  dragoman,  to  torment  you,  and 
be  paid  for  it.  Not  that  there  is  the  least  need  of  this  fellow.  There  is 
not  a  horse  in  Damascus  that  couldn't  keep  the  track  between  that 
place  and  Baalbec  with  his  eyes  shut ;  but  it  is  fashionable  here  to 
have  a  dragoman,  just  as  it  is  to  tie  a  piece  of  (dirty)  white  cotton 
cloth  around  your  hat,  and  buy  a  "  yaller  "  silk  scarf  in  the  bazaars 
to  carry  home.  The  site  of  Baalbec  is  a  pleasant  one,  though  the 
mountain-ride  across  from  Damascus  is  very  rough  and  disagreeable. 
I  noticed,  at  my  dining  station  in  the  Bukaa  valley,  a  party  setting 
out  from  there  to  Baalbec,  thus  avoiding  three  times  crossing  the  hills 
between  that  and  Damascus — a  sensible  procedure.  Baalbec  lies  well 
up  the  valley,  near  some  charming  rivulets  of  water,  at  the  opening 
of  a  little  nook  leading  into  the  main  valley.  For  all  particulars  of 
the  history,  etc.,  of  the  place,  I  refer  the  reader  to  the  larger  works  of 
Thomson,  Porter,  Robinson,  etc.  At  what  period,  or  by  whom,  the 


IgQ  HISTORY   OF   BAALBEC. 

city  was  founded  is  unknown ;  but  it  is  probably  coeval  with  th« 
most  prosperous  period  of  Phoenician  history ;  local  tradition  asso* 
ciates  it  with  King  Solomon.  A  slight  examination  shows  that,  while 
the  colossal  platform  of  the  Temple  and  the  beveled  masonry  under 
the  great  peristyle  point  to  the  Phoenician  architects,  the  Greeks, 
Romans,  and  Syrians  have  all,  in  turn,  had  a  hand  in  the  erection  of 
the  later  structures,  just  as  we  know  that  many  of  the  inscriptions 
are  Saracenic,  and  therefore  comparatively  recent  Julius  Caesar, 
about  B.C.  47,  made  it  a  Roman  colony,  under  the  name  of  Heli- 
opolis.  On  the  coins  of  Augustus  Caesar,  aboub  B.C.  31,  we  find  the 
corroboration  of  this  fact  in  the  inscription,  "  Col.  Julia  Augusta 
Felix  Heliopolis."  A  sacred  oracle  was  established  here  a  century 
later,  which  the  Emperor  Trajan,  A.D.  98,  consulted  prior  to  an  expe- 
dition against  the  Parthians. 

The  city  of  Baalbec  was  irregular  in  form,  covering  an  area  of 
about  a  mile  in  diameter  (more  accurately,  two  miles  in  circumfer- 
ence), and  this  whole  space  is  piled  up  with  debris  of  costly  and  ex- 
quisite architecture  in  marble,  Lebanon  limestone,  granite,  and 
porphyry.  Some  extremely  large  and  elegant  columns  of  porphyry 
were  taken  from  here  1,500  years  since,  and  now  form  portions  of  the 
Mosque  of  St.  Sophia,  at  Constantinople.  The  whole  ruin  may  be  best 
divided,  for  examination,  as  Professor  Rawson  has  done,  into  the 
Great  Temple,  the  Peristyle  Temple,  and  the  Temple  of  the  Sun. 
Weeks  and  months  are  profitably  spent  by  architectural  students  in 
the  study  of  these  three  monuments.  Fortunately,  there  are  extant,  in 
the  great  American  libraries,  copies  of  the  accurate  works  of  Wood  and 
Dawkins,  who  explored,  figured,  and  wrote  up  the  place  in  the  last 
century,  when  many  more  of  the  great  columns,  etc.,  were  standing 
than  now. 

If  an  American  reader,  who  has  never  seen  any  erections  larger 
or  finer  than  the  Capitol  at  Washington,  will  set  his  imagina- 
tion to  work  as  to  the  designs  originally  drawn  on  the  trestle- 
board  by  the  Grand  Architect  of  Baalbec  (perhaps  Hiram  Abif  him- 
self), let  him  be  supposed  to  be  standing  on  the  eastern  edge  of  a 
platform,  looking  west.  First  comes  the  portico,  one  hundred  and 
eighty  feet  from  north  to  south,  and  thirty-seven  feet  deep.  The 
platform  itself  is  elevated  twenty  feet,  the  wall  below  being  built  of 
large  undressed  stones,  and  showing  that  formeily  a  grand  and  massive 
stairway,  now  absent,  led  up  to  it  from  the  direction  of  the  rising 
son.  Only  the  bases  of  the  columns  of  the  portico  remain,  the 


GREAT  TEMPLE  AT  BAALBEC.  181 

columns  themselves  having  been  removed  or  destroyed.  But  the 
wings  of  the  portico,  built  of  stones  from  twenty  to  twenty-four  feet 
long,  and  broad  and  high  in  proportion,  remain  almost  intact.  Into 
each  wing  you  may  enter  from  the  portico  into  chambers  thirty-one 
by  thirty-eight  feet,  which  have  been  used  by  the  present  government 
as  forts ;  stairways  lead  down  from  them  into  the  body  of  the  massive 
platform  below. 

Passing  westward  from  the  portico  through  a  triple  gateway,  we 
enter  a  hexagon  (six-sided)  court,  two  hundred  feet  deep  by  three 
hundred  wide  (from  north  to  south).  On  the  east,  north,  and  south 
sides  of  this  vast  court  are  right-angled  recesses,  each  having  four 
columns  in  front  of  it.  Still  passing  westward,  we  find  a  portal  fifty 
feet  wide  opening  into  the  second  court,  which  surpasses  all  of 
human  grandeur  that  the  world  contains,  except  some  Egyptian 
edifices.  It  is  four  hundred  and  forty  feet  from  east  to  west,  and 
three  hundred  and  seventy  from  north  to  south.  It  was  entirely  en- 
compassed by  recesses  and  niches  which,  in  their  very  ruin,  are  over- 
poweringly  magnificent.  Great  rows  of  columns  surrounded  this 
enormous  court,  their  bases  being  seven  feet  three  inches  in  diameter, 
and  their  height,  including  base,  capital,  and  entablature,  eighty-nine 
feet !  Each  of  these  tremendous  works,  a  portion  of  them  being  of 
that  hardest  and  heaviest  of  stone,  Syenite,  is  composed  of  six  pieces, 
viz. :  the  base  is  one,  the  shaft  three  (fastened  together  inwardly  by 
massive  iron  cramps),  the  capital  one,  and  the  entablature  crossing 
from  pillar  to  pillar,  one.  The  style  is  Corinthian.  The  entablature 
is  exquisitely  done,  "  the  mouldings  being  deep,  and  filled  up  with 
the  egg  and  dice  ornaments.  The  frieze  has  garlands  hung  between 
projections,  each  of  which  is  adorned  with  an  acanthus  leaf  and  a 
bust." 

But  we  are  yet  only  in  the  outer  court  of  Baalbec's  vast  temple. 
Still  continuing  westward,  we  come  now  to  the  real  edifice  for  which 
all  these  costly  approaches  were  made.  It  is  a  vast  peristyle,  measur- 
ing two  hundred  and  ninety  feet  from  east  to  west,  by  one  hundred 
and  sixty.  On  each  side  of  it  were  nineteen  columns,  at  each  end 
ten;  the  dimensions,  etc.,  of  these  columns  have  just  been  given. 
This  temple  stood  on  massive  walls  fifty  feet  high,  so  that  a  person 
mounted  on  the  highest  projection  of  the  wall  is  one  hundred  and 
thirty-nine  feet  above  the  surrounding  plain.  Thus  the  whole  dis- 
tance from  the  eastern  edge  of  the  platform,  through  the  portico,  the 
two  courts,  and  the  temple  itself,  is  nearly  three  hundred  yards. 


jfl2  TEMPLE  Of    THE  8U1T 

And  even  this  does  not  express  the  greatest  architectural  wondei 
of  Baalbec.  That  which  my  readers  will  view  with  the  greatest 
astonishment  is  the  collection  of  enormous  ashlars,  of  which  the 
western  part  of  the  platform  is  composed.  Here  are  the  three  great 
stones,  so  long  and  justly  celebrated,  one  being  sixty-four  feet  in 
length,  one  sixty-three  feet  eight  inches,  the  third  sixty-three  feet, 
making  their  combined  length  one  hundred  and  ninety  feet  eight 
inches.  Their  height  is  thirteen  feet,  and  depth  eleven,  and  they 
are  twenty  feet  above  the  ground,  in  the  heavy  masonry  of  the 
wall  From  these  great  ashlars  the  building  was  named  by  the 
Greeks  "the  Three-stoned"  (trilithon).  In  the  northern  part  of  this 
platform  are  nine  stones,  each  about  thirty-one  by  thirteen  feet,  and 
nine  feet  seven  inches  wide. 

Near  this  wonderful  building  I  have  just  described,  but  on 
a  platform  considerably  lower,  there  stands,  to  the  south,  the  most 
perfect  and  most  magnificent  monument  of  ancient  art  in  Syria,  the 
Temple  of  the  Sun,  or  Apollo.  Like  the  other,  it  faces  the  east,  and 
is  two  hundred  and  twenty-seven  feet  by  one  hundred  and  seventeen, 
something  larger  than  the  Parthenon  at  Athens.  The  style  is  also 
Corinthian.  In  1751,  Wood  and  Dawkins  found  nine  columns  stand- 
ing on  the  south  side  of  this  edifice;  but  the  earthquake  of  1759 
threw  down  three  of  these,  and  nine  from  the  temple  first  described. 
The  portal  to  this  temple,  when  entire,  was  probably  the  most 
striking  and  beautiful  gateway  in  the  world.  It  was  ornamented, 
says  Rawson,  with  every  device  that  could  be  used,  in  the  most  florid 
Corinthian  style.  Ears  of  grain,  vine-leaves,  and  grapes,  with  little 
figures  of  genii  or  elves  hid  among  them,  and  many  choice  touches 
of  scroll-work,  attract  the  eye  and  gratify  the  taste.  Near  the  south- 
west angle  of  this  temple  is  a  heap  of  ruins  that  form  a  most  striking 
image  of  the  desolation  of  architecture ;  in  one  confused  mass,  colossal 
columns  of  shafts,  huge  capitals  that  look,  when  on  the  ground,  out 
of  all  proportion  with  the  airy  columns  that  rise  up  beside  them, 
gigantic  architraves,  friezes,  and  ceilings. 

The  third  of  these  ancient  structures  to  which  the  traveller  will 
give  attention  is  the  Circular  Temple,  situated  about  three  hundred 
yards  from  the  others.  From  the  centre  of  all  these  ruins  the  great 
quarries,  from  which  the  material  for  the  underlying  walls  was 
procured,  lie  under  the  base  of  the  hill,  one-half  mile  west.  Here  is 
a  stone,  finished  in  the  quarry,  but  never  used,  and  the  largest  of 
them  all.  It  is  sixty-eight  feet  in  length,  fourteen  feet  two  inches 


'FOUR   VAST    ASHLARS.  183 

high,  and  thirteen  feet  broad.  It  contains,  therefore,  more  than 
thirteen  thousand  cubic  feet  of  stone,  and  weighs  about  one  thousand 
two  hundred  tons.  To  a  student  of  the  human  intellect,  it  were 
worth  a  visit  to  Baalbec,  to  muse  upon  this  ashlar !  It  would  be  an 
interesting  study  to  compare  it  with  a  few  of  the  great  stones  wrought 
in  different  parts  of  the  world  by  ancient  builders ;  at  Sais,  in  Egypt, 
for  instance,  there  is  a  chapel,  cut  from  a  single  block,  that  ia 
eighteen  feet  long,  thirteen  broad,  and  seven  high.  It  was  brought 
from  Elephantine.  Two  thousand  men  were  employed  for  three 
years  in  carrying  the  mass  down  the  Nile.  It  was  finished  about  B.C. 
569,  under  King  Amadis,  the  man  who  was  visited  by  Pythagoras, 
with  letters  of  introduction  from  the  governor  of  Samos,  by  means 
of  which  he  was  initiated  into  the  mysteries  of  Egypt,  and  whatever 
was  abstruse  and  important  in  their  religion.  A  block  of  granite 
was  quarried  a  few  years  since,  at  Monson,  Ms.,  three  hundred  and 
fifty  feet  long,  eleven  wide,  four  thick,  calculated  to  weigh  about  one 
thousand  three  hundred  tons.  To  detach  it  from  the  matrix,  eleven 
thousand  and  four  holes  were  drilled  in  a  line  parallel  with  its  front 
edge.  The  corner-stone  of  the  State  House  of  Illinois,  spoken  of  in 
the  papers  as  something  ponderous,  weighs  fourteen  tons !  In  the 
Emporium  Romanum,  within  a  few  years,  a  block  of  Syenite  granite 
has  been  found  that  measures  one  hundred  cubic  metres  (a  metreMs 
about  two  feet).  Gibbon  describes  an  obelisk  of  the  same  material, 
as  being  removed  from  Egypt  to  Rome,  that  is  one  hundred  and 
twenty-five  feet  in  length,  and  twelve  feet  diameter  at  the  base.  The 
Luxor  Obelisk,  now  in  Paris,  which  is  seventy-two  feet  high,  is  esti- 
mated to  weigh  one  hundred  and  twenty  tons.  The  column  of  Alex- 
ander, at  St.  Petersburg,  a  granite  monolith,  is  eighty-four  feet  high, 
and  fourteen  in  diameter,  and  estimated  to  weigh  four  hundred  tons. 
The  sarcophagus  of  King  Hiram,  described  in  a  previous  chapter, 
weighs  about  fifty  tons.  The  corner-stone  at  the  southwestern  angle 
of  Mount  Moriah,  thirty  feet  by  eight,  and  six  high,  weighs  about  one 
hundred  and  fifteen  tons ;  another  in  the  same  wall  is  reckoned  at  two 
hundred  and  thirty  tons.  One  of  the  ashlars  in  the  ancient  work  at 
Stonehenge,  England,  weighs  forty  tons ;  another  seventy. 
How  well  it  may  be  said  of  all  these  grand  buildings: 

They  dreamed  not  of  a  perishable  home. 
Who  thus  could  build  ! 

And  yet  the  ancients  had  no  mechanical  powers  other  than  those 


184  HOW  THE  STONES  WERE   MOVED. 

we  possess ;  nor  theirs  half  so  perfectly  at  command  as  our  builders 
have.  Of  the  largest  ashlar  I  have  mentioned,  Mr.  Charles  Buckle 
calculates  that  if  only  muscular  power  was  applied  to  it,  20,000  men 
would  not  be  too  large  a  force,  allowing  one  hundred  and  seventy-six 
pounds  to  each. 
A  poet-author  suggests  good  thoughts  in  these  lines : 

These  lonely  columns  stand  sublime. 

Flinging  their  shadows  from  on  high ; 
The  dial  which  the  wizard  time 

Has  raised  to  count  his  ages  by. 

Dr.  W.  M.  Thomson  very  forcibly  suggests  that,  being  on  the  road 
from  Tyre  to  Tadmor  (Palmyra),  the  Phoenician  masons  who  were 
employed  to  construct  that  wonderful  vision  of  the  Desert,  could  re- 
fresh their  memory  in  the  grandest  architectural  details,  by  an 
examination  of  these  unexcelled  productions,  these  perfect  gems  of 
human  art 

The  coins  struck  here,  in  the  time  of  Septimius  Severus  (crowned 
A.D.  222)  have  on  the  reverse  this  temple,  now  in  ruins,  with  the 
inscription  Colonia  Heliopolitana  lovi  Optimo  Maximo  Heliopoli- 
tana. 

Some  writer  has  elegantly  said  here,  that  time  carries  his  secrets 
away,  leaving  his  enigmas  to  perplex  us.  I  have  already  remarked 
that  popular  tradition  attributes  these  stupendous  works,  as  indeed 
all  other  extraordinary  things  in  this  country,  to  King  Solomon 
They  are  themselves  but  a  stupid  race,  though,  three  hundred  years 
ago,  travellers  reported  them  as  exhibiting  a  skull  so  large  that  .1 
man  could  put  his  head  in  it.  It  surely  was  not  of  any  member  ui' 
the  races  now  inhabiting  this  valley.  The  story  they  tell  of  the  Great 
Ashlar  is,  that  the  devils  (genii,  or  evil  spirits)  being  subjugated 
by  King  Solomon,  were  compelled  by  that  remarkable  executive  to 
excavate  these  majestic  stones,  and  lay  them  in  order  in  the  platform 
at  Baalbec ;  but,  just  as  the  largest  stone  was  about  to  be  cracked 
from  its  native  matrix,  the  death  of  the  Great  King  was  announced  to 
them,  B.C.  975,  and  they  incontinently  refused  to  work  any  longer. 
So  fur  as  I  can  ascertain,  they  have  done  nothing  in  the  architectural 
way  since.  Of  their  flight  the  Arabic  poets  say,  "  they  filled  the  air 
with  the  sound  of  their  chains." 

I  remarked  before  that  the  eight  porphyry  columns  seen  in   the 

osque  of  St.  Sophia,  at  Constantinople,  were  taken  by  the  Roman 
Emperor  Aurelian,  from  the  temple  at  Baalbec,  in  Syria.  When  that 


HISTORY   OF   PALMYRA. 

great  Church  of  St.  Sophia  was  dedicated  by  Justinian,  long  afterwards, 
he  is  said  to  hare  cried  out,  "  Solomon,  I  have  surpassed  you ! "  This 
was  hard  on  Solomon,  who,  haying  been  in  his  royal  sepulchre  for 
some  thirteen  centuries,  was  not  in  a  condition  to  silence  the  brag- 
gadocio. After  all,  when  we  come  to  charge  our  thoughts  full  of 
these  stupendous  proportions,  we  may  bear  in  mind  that  they  do  not 
at  all  equal  those  of  the  Pyramid  of  Cheops,  to  be  described  in  a  later 
chapter. 

Quite  a  number  of  American  lodges  have  names  suggested  by  this 
place,  or  by  particular  objects  found  in  its  ruins,  as,  for  instance, 
Ashlar  Lodge  No.  203,  Georgia;  111,  Iowa;  91,  Michigan;  70,  Massa- 
chusetts ;  also,  Baalbec  Lodge  No.  71,  Massachusetts  ;  Robali  Lodge 
(from  a  Biblical  locality  between  Baalbec  and  Damascus)  is  No.  276, 
Pennsylvania.  From  Naphtali,  the  Hebrew  tribe  that  possessed  this 
end  of  the  country  as  far  as  David's  kingdom  extended,  Lodge  No. 
262,  Ohio,  is  named.  We  enlarge  the  circle  of  association,  by  plant- 
ing amongst  these  grand  old  Masonic  ruins  the  names  of  ten  breth- 
ren, honored  on  the  register  of  American  and  Canadian  Masons, 
viz.,  W.  J.  B.  McLeod  Moore,  Solomon  W.  Cochrane,  X.  J.  Maynard, 
William  C.  Mahan,  Charles  Spaeth,  R.  A.  Whittaker,  M.  E.  Gillette, 
T.  Boyd  Foster,  William  Storer,  and  Enoch  P.  Breed. 

Our  good  brother  Mason,  Lamartine,  set  out  for  this  place  from 
Beyrout,  March  28th,  1833,  wifif  twenTy-'six  horses  and  a  whole  com- 
pany of  natives  for  servants  and  escort  The  French  poet  made  a  noise 
in  these  mountains,  and  his  name  is  even  now  a  household  word  for 
liberality  and  largeness  of  idea.  His  descriptions  are  unparalleled 
for  elegance  of  language,  and  I  regret  that  I  have  not  more  space  tc 
give  them.  I  have  never  seen  a  work  that  the  student  of  the  French 
language  can  read  with  so  much  profit  as  his  "  Souvenirs,  Impres- 
sions,  Pensees  et  Paysages  pendant  un  Voyage  en  Orient,  1832-1833, 
ou  Notes  d'un  Voyageur,  par  M.  De  Lamartine."  In  the  life-long  sor- 
rows of  this  remarkable  man  was  exemplified  the  truth  of  the  adage 
Cuivis  dolori  remedium  est  patientia — the  remedy  for  every  sorrow 
is  patience. 

The  ruins  of  Palmyra,  or  Tadmor,  which  is  the  Bible-name  of  the 
place,  are  only  second  in  extent  and  grandeur  to  those  just  described, 
and  are  best  delineated  in  the  splendid  work  to  which  I  have  already 
referred,  that  of  Wood  and  Dawkins,  published  in  England  about  one 
hundred  and  twenty  years  since.  To  visit  the  place  at  present 
involves  so  heavy  an  expense,  in  purchasing  protection  from  the 


Igg  SHEIKH   OF   PALMYRA. 

Arabs,  that  but  few  travellers  care  to  attempt  it.  I  was  within  the 
turn  of  a  hand  in  securing  a  free  and  safe  passage,  on  the  staff  of  the 
Pasha,  in  April,  1868,  but  failed  at  the  last  moment,  for  reasons  I  will 
detail  in  my  chapter  on  Damascus.  It  is  a  journey,  from  Damascus, 
of  five  days  by  the  ordinary  mode  of  travel.  The  sheikh  who  furnishes 
the  required  escort  is  named  Miguel,  a  fine  specimen  of  the  Bedouin ; 
for,  although  his  charges  are  exorbitant — $100  to  $150  a  head — yet 
when  he  has  your  money  in  his  belt  and  your  life  in  his  power,  he 
will  be  found,  it  is  said,  kind,  generous,  and  faithful.  The  tribe  to 
which  he  is  attached  is  that  of  El  Besher,  the  most  numerous  of  the 
Anazeh  tribes.  The  Anazeh,  by  the  way,  is  a  nation  of  itself,  the 
most  powerful  of  the  Arab  clans,  covering  the  desert  from  the  Eiver 
Euphrates  to  Syria,  and  boasting  of  10,000  horsemen,  90,000  camel- 
riders,  etc.,  etc.  The  sheikh  Miguel  married  an  Englishwoman,  Mrs. 
Digby,  whom  I  met  twice  in  the  Protestant  Church  at  Damascus. 
She  lives  part  of  the  year  in  the  deserts  with  her  husband,  and  the 
rest  of  the  time  among  civilized  people  in  Damascus,  where  she  is 
attentive  to  religious  duties,  and  bears  a  good  reputation  among  the 
Protestant  missionaries  with  whom  I  made  acquaintance  there.  So 
much  was  said  in  the  papers  against  Mrs.  Digby,  a  few  years  since, 
that  I  am  constrained  to  record  this  testimony  in  her  favor.  I  saw 
members  of  her  tribe  (the  Anazeh)  in  Damascus,  all  wearing  the 
conventional  dress  of  the  clan,  viz.,  an  undergarment  of  calico,  gray 
or  blue,  extending  to  the  mid-leg,  and  fastened  round  the  waist  by  a 
leathern  girdle,  in  the  fashion  of  our  June-saint,  John  the  Baptist. 
The  sleeves  are  wide,  and  have  very  long  pendant  points.  Over  this 
is  thrown  the  cloak  (abah)  of  goats'  hair,  having  usually  broad,  verti- 
cal stripes  of  white  and  brown.  On  the  head  is  the  handkerchief 
(Kafeeyah)  of  yellow  silk  or  cotton,  tied  round  the  temples  by  a  cord 
of  black  camels'  hair,  passed  twice  round.  The  chiefs  wear  a  short 
scarlet  pelisse,  lined  with  fur,  and  large  red  boots ;  but  the  common 
people  go  barefoot.  These  people  are  small  and  low  of  stature  (about 
five  feet  six  inches),  but  walk  erect,  step  light,  and  are  as  graceful  in 
movements  as  our  Western  Indians  before  they  learn  the  mysteries 
of  "  tangle-foot"  On  their  faces  is  the  expression  of  a  wild,  free  na- 
ture;  the  piercing,  fitful,  daring  flash  of  the  eye  is  startling,  while 
tlu-ir  abrupt  speech,  as  a  writer  says,  is  like  the  sudden  bark  of  a  dog. 
h ;u  led  a  squad  of  them  on  the  mounds  outside  the  east  gate  of 
Damascus  one  morning,  by  making  use  of  some  friendly  expression, 
and  the  manner  in  which  they  turned  on  me  and  snapped  their  jaws 


.APPEARANCE  OF  PALMYRA.  187 

together  would  have  been  alarming,  only  that  I  don't  scare  worth  a 
cent.  I  only  laughed  at  them,  and  twiddled  my  fingers  gracefully 
from  the  end  of  my  nose.  Whereat,  after  a  moment's  exchange  of 
glances  with  each  other,  they  laughed  too,  and  asked  me  for  back- 
sheesh.  Which  they  didn't  get.  Each  of  those  ruffians  of  Anazeh 
had  a  gun,  horse-pistols  like  blunderbuses,  and  a  dagger,  and  looked 
about  as  dangerous  as  a  corner-group  of  Five- Points  loafers. 

The  way  to  Palmyra  (I  had  almost  forgotten  my  subject)  is  by 
Kuryetein,  where  a  supply  of  water  must  be  taken  to  cross  the  des- 
ert. This  is  quite  a  town,  containing  a  large  Christian  church.  Here 
you  are  forty  miles  from  Palmyra,  and  on  what  was  once  the  highway 
from  Mesopotamia  to  Syria.  All  roads  in  this  country  must  be  regu- 
lated by  the  water-supply,  and  the  fountains  of  Kuryetein  and  Pal- 
myra, established  these  as  essential  points  on  the  journey.  Abraham 
must  have  come  this  way  B.C.  1921.  'Jacob  went  to  Padanaram  by 
this  route,  and  returned  again  twenty  years  later.  The  exiles  of 
Israel  and  of  Judah  well  knew  this  weary  road.  When  Palmyra  was 
in  its  glory,  the  wealth  of  the  east  and  the  commerce  of  the  west  were 
conveyed  along  this  highway.  But  Jim  Fisk's  old  peddler-wagon 
could  carry  all  the  goods  that  pass  along  here  now. 

The  appearance  of  Palmyra  is  said  to  be  startling  and  romantic. 
Syria,  it  is  claimed,  has  nothing  to  compare  with  it.  Euinsso  exten- 
sive, so  desolate,  so  bare,  exist  nowhere  else.  Long  lines  of  columns, 
in  irregular  clumps  and  single  pillars,  rising  up  out  of  huge  piles  of 
white  stones;  fragments  of  gateways,  and  arches,  and  walls,  and  por- 
ticoes; such  is  the  general  view  of  the  great  "Peddlers'  city"  of 
King  Solomon.  Here  that  far-seeing  "  Merchant-King  "  established 
a  vast  depot  for  the  exchange  of  commodities.  Out  of  the  enormous 
developments  of  the  trading  spirit  in  those  days,  the  poets  derived 
many  of  their  keenest  jests.  The  reader  will  particularly  recall  that 
of  Ovid: 

Da  modo  Incra  milii  da  facto  gaudia  lucro  ; 
Et  face  ut  emptori  verba  dedisse  juvet : 

— only  let  me  have  a.profit,  let  me  enjoy  the  delight  of  making  a  bar- 
gain, and  impose  on  my  customers! 

The  situation  was  the  best  in  the  world,  half-way  from  the  Euphra- 
tes to  the  Jordan.  An  abundance  of  good  water  was  here,  and  so, 
for  1,500  years,  Palmyra  vindicated  the  forethought  of  Solomon  in 
wealth,  power,  and  political  importance.  With  this  city  the  history  of 
Zenobia  is  associated — Zenobia,  Queen  of  the  East,  who,  leading  her 


188  THE   GREAT   COLONNADE. 

armies  from  these  deserts,  A.D.  274,  conquered  Syria,  Asia  Mmoi,  and 
Mesopotamia,  and  defied  the  Roman  himself.  She  was  overcome,  how- 
ever, and  taken  a  prisoner  to  Home.  From  that  perio'd  the  decline 
of  Palmyra  began,  and  now  its  population  is  scarcely  three  hundred 
souls,  who  reside  in  some  fifty  wretched  hovels  built  within  the  court 
of  the  temple. 

The  Temple  of  the  Sun,  which  is  one  of  the  great  attractions  of 
Palmyra,  is  contained  within  a  square  court,  740  feet  on  a  side,  with 
walls  seventy  feet  high.  The  entrance  to  this  was  on  the  western 
side,  through  a  triple  gateway,  ornamented  by  a  portico  of  ten 
columns.  The  central  door  was  thirty-two  feet  high  and  sixteen 
wide.  Its  sides  and  lintel  were  monoliths,  richly  sculptured  with 
garlands  of  fruits  and  flowers.  Nearly  100  of  the  grand  columns  of 
this  court  are  yet  standing. 

In  this  court,  and  near  the  southeastern  corner,  was  the  temple 
itself.  A  single  row  of  fluted  Corinthian  columns,  sixty-four  feet 
high,  with  bronze  capitals,  encompassed  the  Sanctum  Sanctorum, 
supporting  an  unbroken  entablature,  ornamented  by  festoons  of  fruits 
and  flowers,  held  up  at  intervals  by  winged  figures.  The  sculptures 
are  much  like  those  at  Baalbec,  and  not  inferior  in  design  or  execu- 
tion. The  signs  of  the  Zodiac  are  seen  on  a  portion  of  the  remain- 
ing wall. 

But,  as  Dr.  Porter  observes,  it  is  the  Great  Colonnade  that  consti- 
tutes the  chief  wonder  of  Palmyra.  It  was  originally  composed  of 
rows  of  columns,  thus  forming  one  central  and  two  side  avenues, 
which  extended  through  the  city  about  4,000  feet.  Each  column, 
on  the  inner  side,  had  a  bracket  for  a  statue.  There  are  remaining 
about  150  of  these  columns  out  of  the  original  number,  1,500.  Their 
height,  including  base  and  capital,  is  fifty-seven  feet.  Two  or  three 
columns  are  still  seen  here  of  the  Syenite  (red  Egyptian)  granite, 
brought,  of  course,  all  the  way  from  the  quarries  of  Syene,  high  up  the 
Nile.  All  the  other  columns,  however,  together  with  the  buildings 
and  walls,  are  of  compact  limestone,  so  fine  and  firm  in  texture  as  to 
receive  a  polish  nearly  equal  to  marble.  It  is  of  a  yellowish  white 
color,  and  was  doubtless  quarried  near  by. 

The  names  Tadmor  and  Palmyra  have  been  used  in  the  distinctive 
titles  of  American  Lodges,  viz.,  Lodge  No.  108,  Kentucky ;  55,  Vir- 
ginia; 147,  North  Carolina;  248,  New  York;  68,  Wisconsin,  and 
others.  From  the  river,  a  little  way  east  of  Tadmor,  we  have  the 
name  of  Euphrates  Lodge  No.  157,  England. 


LACK    OF   EXPLORERS. 


189 


To  make  a  still  closer  union  of  Masonic  names  with  this,  so 
Honored  in  history,  the  following  list  of  American  Masons  is  asso- 
ciated with  Palmyra :  Martin  H.  Rice,  0.  H.  Minor,  Noble  D.  Larnerj 
Alfred  W.  Morris,  A.  R  West,  John  Hoole,  D.  B.  Tracey,  A.  S.  Wad- 
hams,  George  W.  Harris,  Alfred  Burnett. 

It  is  a  strange  neglect  of  those  rich  and  powerful  associations,  the 
London  Palestine  Fund,  etc.,  that  they  do  not  visit  Palmyra,  and- 
bring  modern  learning  and  skill  to  bear  upon  this  ancient  and  re- 
nowned city  of  the  East. 


COIN   OF   ALEXANDER  THE   GREAT. 


COIN-NOTES  EXPLANATORY  OP  PAGE  862. 

The  coins  so  forcibly  delineated  on  page  362,  are  thus  named, 
beginning  at  the  top  and  reading  the  lines  toward  the  right 
hand  :  Messina ;  Trapane ;  Catania ;  Syracuse  ;  Syracuse ;  Seg 
fcsta ;  Agrigentum ;  Megara ;  Panormus  ;  Lentini ;  Unnamed  ; 
Egypt;  Al.  Severus;  Macrinus ;  Egypt. 


MAP  OF 

PALESTINE 

in  the  time-  of 

CHRIST. 


DIVISION  FIFTH.-THE  BAY  OF  THE  FLOTES. 


The  land  of  patriarchs  and  prophets ;  the  land  of  apostles,  and  martyrs,  and 
confessors ;  the  land  of  Emmanuel, — the  HOLY  LAND  ! 

The  antiquities  of  this  country  display  less  beauty  than  those  of  Greece,  but 
far  more  of  arduous  labor.  They  remind  us  greatly  more  of  the  people  than  the 
artist. 

By  its  constant  reference  to  localities, — mountain,  rock,  plain,  river,  tree, — 
the  Bible  seems  to  invite  examination  ;  and  indeed  it  is  only  by  such  examina- 
tion that  we  can  appreciate  its  minute  accuracy,  and  realize  how  far  its  plain, 
matter-of-fact  statements  of  actual  occurrences,  to  actual  persons,  in  actual  places, 
— how  far  these  raise  its  records  above  the  unreal  and  unconnected  rhapsodies 
and  the  vain  repetitions  of  the  sacred  books  of  other  religions. 

The  Holy  Land  is  a  country  of  ruins,  of  fragments.  All  those  objects  re- 
ferred to  in  the  Holy  Writings,  as  well  as  the  Masonic  lectures,  are  in  ruins,  and 
it  is  necessaiy  to  go  under  ground  and  see  what  "  mother-earth"  has  "heled" 
there,  before  any  labors  of  the  past  ages  can  be  established.'  As  the  bodies  of 
the  ancient  craft  lie  in  dust  in  their  stone  coffins,  so  of  their  works ;  "  dust  and 
ashes  "  symbolize  them. 

Of  the  signs  and  ceremonies  of  Freemasonry,  the  remains  of  ancient  mysteries, 
fragmentary  remains  are  preserved  here  in  the  customs  of  the  common  people, 
especially  in  their  religious  and  burial  cen  monies. 

13 


CHAPTER  XII. 

THE   MASONIC  BAY. 

HE  fourth  of  the  Seven  Grand  Masonic  Localities  visited 
and  identified  during  my  researches  in  Bible  lands,  is  the 
MASONIC  BAY,  on  the  shores  of  which  the  materials  of 
cedar  and  fir  were  made  up  into  rafts  ("  flotes  "),  and  em- 
barked for  Joppa.  This  is  the  sheet  of  water  in  modern 
times  known  as  the  Bay  of  Beyrout,  or  more  commonly  St.  George's 
Bay,  this  title  referring  to  the  fabled  encounter  of  that  hero  with 
the  dragon,  so  graphically  described  in  Spenser's  Faerie  Queeue, 
(Book  1,  Canto  XI).  To  amuse  strangers  and  extort  from  them  their 
loose  piastres,  the  Arab  guides  even  now  will  show  the  cave  from 
whence  the  dragon  issued  on  that  memorable  occasion,  and  for  a 
suitable  consideration,  his  very  scales  and  bones. 

I  have  modernized  Spenser's  language,  to  give  a  verse  showing  how 
hard  and  heavy  the  beast  died : 

So  dmon  he  felly  and  forth  his  life  did  breathe, 
That  vanished  into  smoke  and  clouds  all  swift ; 

So  down  he  fell,  that  earth  him  underneath 
Did  groan,  as  "feeble  do  great  load  to  lift. 
So  down  he  fell,  as  a  huge  rocky  clift 

Whose  false  foundation  waves  have  washed  away, 
With  dreadful  poise  is  from  the  mainland  rift, 

And  rolling  down,  great  Neptune  doth  dismay ; 

So  down  he  fell,  and  like  an  heaped  mountain  lay. 

After  repeatedly  exploring  the  Bay  of  St.  George,  and  comparing  it 
with  all  the  other  bays  upon  the  coast  near  by,  I  came  to  the  settled 
conclusion,  which  fire  cannot  burn  out  of  me,  that  here  wa«  the  chief 
of  those  natural  coves  or  harbors  used  by  our  ancient  brethren  in 
making  up  "  flotes  "  of  the  cedars,  which  they  felled  from  the  sides 
"f  the  hills,  that  rise  above  it,  and  shipped  to  Joppa  (1  Kings  v. ;  2 
*'hron.  ii).  Hiram,  in  his  celebrated  letter  to  Solomon,  says :  "  My 


IXSCRIPTIOXS   OX   THE   ROCKS.  195 

servants  shall  bring  them  (the  timbers)  down  from  Lebanon  to  the 
sc-a  in  flotes,  unto  the  place  that  thou  shalt  appoint  me,  and  will 
cause  them  to  be  discharged  there,  and  thou  shalt  receive  them." 

A  charming  place  indeed  is  this  Masonic  Bay,  with  its  beautifu 
curves  and  coves,  its  deep  blue  waters,  its  clean  white  sands,  and  the 
unparalleled  grandeur  of  the  overhanging  hills  upon  the  east.  On 
the  day  I  first  rode  around  •  it  (March  5)  the  bay  was  lashed  into 
fury  by  a  gale,  as  I  have  described  in  a  preceding  chapter.  And  I 
saw  that,  while  it  is  the  best  of  the  Syria  harbors,  it  is  at  the  best  but 
an  insecure  anchorage.  I  succeeded,  however,  in  reaching  the  foot  of 
the  mountain,  and  entering  the  little  khan,  where  some  ten  or  twelve 
other  persons,  weather-bound,  with  their  beasts  of  burden,  had  collect- 
ed before  me.  The  Masonic  Bay  is  famous  at  the  present  day  for  its 
wrecks,  of  which  four,  one  of  them  quite  recently  stranded,  met  my 
eyes  as  I  rode  along  the  beach.  Near  the  northern  extremity  of  the 
bay  is  the  celebrated  military  pass  of  Xahr-el-Kelb  (Dog  Kiver), 
by  the  side  of  which  may  be  seen  the  most  remarkable  collection  of 
ancient  emblems  and  inscriptions  in  the  world.  That  the  reader  may 
understand  the  subject  perfectly,  I  will  explain  that  through  this 
maritime  country  (Phoenicia)  lies  the  only  great  military  road  for- 
merly connecting  Asia  with  Africa.  As  such  it  was  used  for  more 
than  three  thousand  years.  When  Rameses,  or  Sesostris,  the  mighty 
Egyptian  conqueror,  passed  up  this  coast,  about  B.C.  1400,  say  3,300 
years  ago,  on  his  way  to  the  conquest  of  Assyria,  he  found  his  pro- 
gress impeded  by  this  spur  of  Mt.  Lebanon  running  into  the  sea,  just 
north  of  the  Bay  of  St.  George.  Through  the  hard  limestone  of  Leba- 
non, on  which  my  chisel  has  rung  so  often,  his  engineers  cut  a  mili- 
tary road,  a  work,  considering  they  only  had  copper  or  bronze  tools, 
of  immense  labor.  On  his  return  to  Egypt,  after  achieving  great 
victories  in  the  East,  he  engraved  upon  large  smooth  panels,  chiseled 
in  the  sides  of  the  native  stone  for  that  purpose,  hieroglyphical  records 
of  his  victories.  Those  inscriptions  are  still  here,  though  thirty- 
three  centuries  have  passed  since  the  edge  of  the  chisel  indented  them ! 
As  I  sat  and  made  drawings  of  them,  the  sea-breeze  whistled  mourn- 
fully through  the  insulator  of  the  telegraph-pole  that  is  fixed  in  a 
crevice  of  the  rock,  right  in  front  of  it. 

Again,  when  Sennacherib,  the  Assyrian  conqueror,  came  down  this 
way  to  the  conquest  of  Egypt,  about  B.C.  700,  say  2,600  years  ago,  he 
ordered  panels  of  the  same  character  cut  by  the  side  of  the  last,  on 
which  his  name  and  his  victories  were,  in  the  Assyrian  cuneiform 


196  8E80STRIS  TO   NAPOLEON. 

characters,  dnly  recorded,  and  these,  too,  still  remain !  After  I  had 
copied  them,  I  read  in  Isaiah  xxxvii.  of  the  haughtiness  of  this  mon- 
arch, his  great  victories,  the  terrible  destruction  of  his  armies  by  a 
simoon,  and  his  murder  at  the  hands  of  his  own  sons. 

Again,  when  the  Roman  Emperor  Aurelian  had  completed  his 
conquests  in  this  country,  about  A.D.  173,  say  1,700  years  ago,  finding 
the  old  Sesostris-Sennacherib  military  road  in  disrepair,  he  caused  a 
new  one  to  be  excavated  from  the  solid  rock,  about  twenty  feet  lower 
down  the  mountain-spur  than  the  other ;  it  is  this  which  is  now  used. 
Aurelian  commemorated  the  act  by  an  inscription  that  still  remains, 
in  square,  beautiful  Roman  letters,  giving  his  name  and  his  exploits. 
Here  it  is,  just  as  I  copied  it,  on  my  fifth  visit  there : 

Imp.  Caes.  M.  Avrelivs 

Antoninvs  Pivs  Felix  Avgvstvs 

Part.  Max.  Brit.  Max.  Germ  Maximvs 

Pontifex  Maximvs. 

Montibvs  Imminentibvs 

Lyco  Flvmini  Caesis  Viam  Delatavit, 

Per  *  *  *  * 

Antoninianam  Svam. 

The  portion  after  Per  was  carefully  erased  by  somebody  long  since. 
It  is  probable,  says  Porter,  that  this  work  was  constructed  about  A.D. 
173. 

Again,  one  of  the  Saracenic  conquerors,  about  A.D.  1400,  left  an 
inscription  here,  cut  elegantly  in  a  stone  panel,  on  the  same  plan  as 
that  adopted  by  his  predecessors,  and  this  also  remains.  And  so 
finally  did  the  French  soldiers  who  were  here  in  1860  and  1861.  Now, 
my  visit  to  Nahr-el-Kelb,  March  5,  1868  (which,  by  the  way,  waa 
the  twenty-second  anniversary  of  my  own  initiation  into  Free- 
masonry), was  made  for  the  particular  purpose  of  inspecting  these 
ancient  emblems  and  inscriptions.  I  found  nine  of  them  on  the  old 
or  upper  road  (that  of  Sesostris),  which  to  reach  now  requires  con- 
siderable climbing.  No  doubt  there  were  originally  more  of  these 
carved  panels— lost  by  the  breaking  away  of  the  cliffs  on  the  south 
Three  are  considered  to  be  Egyptian,  and  six  Assyrian.  When 
ght  strikes  the  ancient  carvings  properly,  they  stand  out  plainly 

ragh  to  the  eye.  I  found  it  necessary,  however,  to  stand  off  fifteen 
nty  feet  from  them,  to  gather  the  original  idea  satisfactorily. 

Beginning  at  the  south,  or  upper  end  of  the  road,  the  carvings  are 
thus  arranged,  viz. : 


THE    GEEAT   HUMAN   IM  1GE.  197 

1st.  Assyrian.  King  Sennacherib  at  full  length.  A  fine  figure  of 
a  bearded  man,  his  left  arm  grasping  a  club,  and  bent  across  the 
breast ;  the  right  arm  raised.  In  Layard's  Nineveh  yon  see  this  fig- 
ure again  and  again  repeated.  The  whole  tablet  or  panel  is  covered 
with  an  inscription  in  the  Assyrian  cunei  characters,  which  Rawlinson 
and  Lepsius  hare  read  without  much  difficulty. 

2d.  Egyptian.  Two  small  figures  at  the  top,  and  inscriptions  below  ; 
the  whole  rather  indistinct. 

3d.  Assyrian.  Rounded  at  the  top,  with  a  border  encircling  it.  A 
figure  like  No.  1 ;  no  inscriptions. 

4th.  Egyptian.  Square-topped,  with  a  cornice.    Figures  like  No.  2. 

5th.  Assyrian.  Much  like  No.  1 ;  in  good  preservation. 

6th.  Assyrian.  Round-topped.     A  figure  like  that  in  No.  5. 

7th.  Assyrian.  Square-topped.    Figure  indistinct. 

8th.  Assyrian.  Square-topped.  Figure  like  that  in  No.  1 ;  the  out- 
line only  discernible. 

9th.  Egyptian.  Square  at  top  ;  ornamented  with  a  cornice,  with  the 
design  called  cavetto. 

In  the  corners  of  the  three  Egyptian  tablets  are  holes,  apparently 
made  to  insert  staples  for  hinges,  showing  that  doors,  probably  of 
bronze,  were  constructed  to  protect  the  carvings  from  the  weather. 

Near  the  tablet  marked  No.  1, 1  selected  a  spot  a  few  feet  south  of 
the  Human  Image,  whose  right  hand  is  raised  in  such  a  suggestive 
attitude  towards  heaven,  and  cut  in  the  solid  rock  an  emblem  more 
•expressive  and  glorious  than  all  the  symbolisms  of  Egypt,  Assyria, 
and  Rome  combined,  viz.,  the  Square  and  Compass.  The  place  of 
this  inscription  is  a  romantic  one.  Nearly  on  the  apex  of  that  spur 
of  Lebanon  through  which  the  engineers  of  Sesostris  made  their 
arduous  way,  it  overlooks  the  Mediterranean  Sea  for  twenty  miles  out, 
giving  an  outlook  towards  Gebal  northward,  and  over  the  Masonic 
Bay  beyond  Beyrout  southward. 

After  cutting  this  emblem,  I  solemnly  consecrated  the  place  to  a 
suitable  number  of  those  Masonic  brethren  whose  patronage  enabled 
me  to  set  about  this  mission.  This  was  to  the  intent  that  a  Masonic 
interest  might  attach  to  the  place,  and  that  the  future  tourist,  look- 
ing upon  the  Square  and  Compass  conspicuously  engraven  here,  may 
recall  those  names  which  our  institution  "  does  not  willingly  let  die.' 
A  few  weeks  after  this  was  done,  Admiral  Lord  Paget  visited  Bey- 
rout  with  a  squadron  of  ships;  and  in  company  with  the  British 
Consul,  E.  T.  Rogers,  Esq.  (the  Worshipful  Master  of  Palestine  Lodge, 


198  THE  WIDOW'S  SON. 

No.  415,  at  Beyrout),  made  an  examination  of  these  ancient  locali- 
ties. Seeing  the  Square  and  Compass  chiseled  upon  that  hillside, 
the  old  mariner,  it  is  said,  put  on  a  knowing  look,  and  made  a  remark 
which  my  readers  would  have  perfectly  understood  had  they  only 
heard  it 

The  names  of  Masons  located  here,  and  associated  thus  intimately 
with  Hiram,  King  of  Tyre ;  Hiram  Abif,  the  Widow's  Son ;  Ado- 
niram,  Prince  of  Judah ;  and  Zabud,  the  King's  Friend,  are  the 
following:  Thomas  H.  Benton,  Jr.,  Rev.  William  Leas,  J.  M. 
Griffith,  M.  W.  Robinson,  William  Potts,  R.  J.  Chesnutwood,  B.  H. 
Dewey,  Luke  Lockwood,  James  Walsh,  Charles  E.  Blumenthal,  M.D. 

In  consecrating  this  spot,  first  of  all  to  the  memory  of  "  the  Widow's 
Son,"  I  do  not  forget  that  he  must  many  a  time  have  "  gone  this 
way,"  journeying  to  that  school  of  architecture,  Gebal,  twenty  miles 
up  the  coast.  Passing  where  I  passed  this  morning,  he  must  have 
halted  and  stood  where  I  now  stand,  to  examine  these  three  ancient 
Egyptian  tablets,  then  scarcely  five  centuries  old,  and,  doubtless, 
perfectly  distinct  to  an  eye  like  his,  skillful  uto  find  out  every 
device  "  (2  Chron.  ii.  14),  and  probably  learned  in  all  the  knowledge 
of  the  Egyptians,  as  Moses  was.  It  was  easy  for  Hiram,  then,  to 
read  all  these  hieroglyphics,  which  only  by  taking  the  utmost  advan- 
tage  of  the  sunlight  I  can  now  barely  trace  out 

One  of  the  most  elegant  myths  connected  with  the  history  of 
Freemasonry  in  the  Holy  Land  is  associated  with  this  spot  It  is  to 
the  effect  that,  when  King  Solomon  had  forwarded  to  King  Hiram 
of  Tyre  his  royal  request,  "  to  send  him  a  man  cunning  to  work  in 
gold,  etc.,  and  skillful  to  grave  with  his  own  cunning  men"  (2 
Chron.  ii.  7) ;  and  when  that  monarch  had  chosen  his  own  name- 
sake, the  renowned  Hiram  Abif,  the  latter  promptly  accepted  the 
trust,  and  set  off*  for  a  tour  through  the  Lebanons,  to  designate  the 
most  accessible  groves  of  cedar,  and  the  best  natural  coves  in  which 
they  could  be  made  up  into  flotes  and  embarked.  A  number  of 
bays  met  his  view,  but  none  that  presented  such  a  combination  of 
favorable  circumstances  as  this,  which  I  call  Masonic  Bay,  at  the 
mouth  of  Nahr-el-Kelb.  Just  above  it  the  overhanging  mountains, 
now  so  bleak  and  unclothed,  abounded  in  the  finest  groves  of  cedar 
and  fir.  The  natural  avenues 'to  the  sea  which  were  presented  by  the 
ravine  of  Nahr-el-Kelb,  at  the  north  end  of  the  bay,  and  Beyrout  River 
at  the  south  end,  afforded  the  most  desirable  inclines  down  which 
the  cedar-trunks  could  be  mov^d  from  the  mountains.  This  place 


THE  MUSE  AT  DOG  RIVER.  199 

was  therefore  selected ;  and  during  the  seven  years  in  which  the  best 
science  and  skill  of  Phoenicia  were  expended  in  the  erection  of  King 
Solomon's  Temple  at  Jerusalem,  the  shores  of  this  bay  presented  an 
appearance  only  paralleled,  at  the  present  time,  by  those  vast  depots 
of  pine-timber  in  which  the  supplies  of  Maine  and  Wisconsin  are 
hoarded  up. 

And  now  to  recall  the  myth  alluded  to.  It  seems,  from  the  traditions 
»f  the  craft,  that  various  questions  in  regard  to  the  construction  of 
Freemasonry,  or  "speculative  masonry,"  as  we  call  it,  were  made 
subjects  of  discussion  by  the  three  Grand  Masters,  and  settled  from 
time  to  time  at  their  conferences  in  Jerusalem.  One  of  the  most 
interesting  of  these  was  that  of  an  appropriate  color.  Upon  this 
point  the  minds  of  the  three  philosophers  were  strangely  diverse. 
King  Solomon  preferred  red,  or  scarlet,  emblematic  of  that  fer- 
vency and  zeal  so  strikingly  illustrated  in  his  own  character.  King 
Hiram  expressed  his  choice  of  the  royal  color,  purple,  a  hue  associ- 
ated with  his  own  metropolis,  Tyre,  ever  since  the  purple-shell  had 
been  utilized  as  emblematic  of  the  noblest  precepts.  Hiram  Abif 
was  partial  to  blue,  as  suggestive  of  that  expansion  and  universality 
which,  they  all  hoped,  would  become  characteristics  of  the  new 
society.  Standing  here  on  this  lofty  point  of  rocks,  and  gazing  over 
the  vast  sea  before  him — a  sea  famed  in  all  ages  for  its  depths  of  blue, 
the  boundary  of  his  vision  only  limited  by  a  clearness  of  blue,  Hiram 
stored  his  mind  with  so  many  arguments  in  favor  of  the  adoption  of 
that  color,  that  when  the  three  Grand  Masters  held  their  next  confer- 
ence at  Jerusalem  his  logic  proved  irresistible,  and  so  the  "  cerulean 
hue  "  was  adopted  as  the  unchangeable  type  of  Masonry. 

The  following  lines  were  written  at  this  locality : 

Thoughtfully  gazing  on  this  wall, 

By  Egypt  carved  for  Egypt's  glory, 
I  strive  to  call  before  me  all 

The  sum  of  this  symbolic  story: 
It  is,  that  in  the  human  heart 

There  ever  is  a  deathless  longing 
For  life  eternal ;  from  death's  rest 

The  immortal  soul  expects  returning. 

These  cor.querors,  in  blood  and  flame, 

Wrote  on  earth's  history  their  hope 
To  have  eternity  of  fame ! 

Traveller  upon  these  mountains,  stop 


0..0  TERRACE-CULTIVATION. 

And  pay  obeisance !  'twas  a  good 

And  worthy  hope,— the  same  that  fires 
And  animates  your  generous  blood, 

And  to  all  noble  deeds  inspires! 

The  examination  of  this  beautiful  Bay  of  the  Kafts  was  the  sub- 
ject of  numerous  explorations,  both  along  the  beach  and  at  the  foot 
of  the  mountains.  Here,  as  Porter  says,.the  terrace-cultivatiou,  to 
which  I  alluded  in  my  description  of  a  stage-ride  from  Beyrout  to 
Damascus,  is  seen  in  perfection.  What  an  amount  of  time  and 
industry  has  been  expended  in  these  terraces !  But  they  show, 
better  than  anything  else,  how  a  dense  and  industrious  population 
like  that  of  the  Jews,  from  B.C.  1450  to  A.D.  70,  succeeded  in  turn- 
ing the  hillsides  of  Palestine  into  gardens,  and  orchards,  and  fruitful 
fields.  These  terraces  typify  the  golden  future  of  this  country. 
What  richness  must  be  in  this  disintegrated  limestone-soil,  where  a 
few  handfuls  of  dirt  scattered  among  the  rocks  can  produce  such 
vines,  fig-trees,  mulberries,  and  olives,  as  I  see  here ! 

And  it  was  here,  too,  that  I  first  learned  to  view  with  infinite  scorn 
and  contempt  the  practices  of  ordinary  tourists  who  throng  this 
country.  After  meeting  and  greeting  the  first  dozen  or  two  of  them, 
I  accustomed  myself  to  avoiding  them  as  the  genuine  bores  of  'the 
land.  Their  "  beastly-looking  place,  you  know, "  became  more  dis- 
agreeable to  my  ears  than  a  whole  volley  of  Arabic  gutturals.  They 
skim  the  country  like  a  bird,  but  without  the  bird's  powers  of  per- 
ception. They  ride  all  day  to  sleep  soundly  all  night,  that  they  may 
ride  all  next  day,  and  sleep  soundly  all  next  night.  That  is  the  his- 
tory and  the  pith  of  their  diaries,  if  they  keep  diaries  while  in  Pal- 
estine. 

But,  oh,  the  laziness  of  the  natives  !  Ignavis  semper  ferm  sunl 
is  their  motto — it  is  always  holiday  to  the  idle.  It  gave  me  the  fidgets 
to  see  one  of  them  hoeing  in  his  garden.  He  stood  so  long  in  one 
place  that,  if  he  had  worn  a  broad-brimmed  hat  instead  of  a  tar- 
boush,  the  shade  might  affect  the  growth  of  the  plants.  (This,  by  the 
way,  is  an  old  Kentucky  joke;  a  neighbor  of  mine  did  kill  his 
tobacco-plants  in  that  way,  or  report  lies.)  Biding  one  day  in  search 
of  shells,  near  the  mouth  of  Nahr-el-Kelb 

I  found  a  wild  and  strange  retreat 

As  e'er  was  trod  by  outlaw  feet ; 

The  dell  beneath  the  mountain's  crest 

Yawned  like  a  gash  on  warrior's  breast 

— Scott. 


BIBLE   IN"   HEAD,   HAND,   AND   HEART.  201 

Biding,  I  say,  along  the  mouth  of  that  grand  gorge  through  which 
the  Dog  Biver  flows,  under  the  aqueduct,  where  the  spider  sparkles 
like  a  rich  setting  of  pearls  and  rubies,  and  makes  his  web  a  marvel 
of  geometric  preciseness,  I  met  an  Arab  sheikh,  small  of  stature,  about 
forty,  keen  as  a  fox,  with  whom  I  had  a  long  talk  about  farming.  I 
told  him  all  that  Horace  Greeley  "knows  about  farming;"  all  my 
own  experience  in  raising  corn,  and  cattle,  and  hogs ;  described  the 
success  of  my  (much)  "better  half"  in  butter-aud-milk  raising,  and 
chicken-raising,  and  cabbage-raising.  By  means  of  Hassan,  whose 
powers  of  interpretation  are  sorely  tried  when  I  tell  these  people 
things  they  never  heard  of  before,  but  whose  faith  in  "  General 
Morris "  is  of  that  sort  which  "  removes  mountains,"  I  really  did 
expatiate  and  spread  myself  before  the  eyes  of  that  Arab  sheikh, 
who  all  the  time  was  drinking  my  coffee,  and  smoking  cigarettes  at  the 
expense  of  the  "  Masonic  Exploration  Fund. "  And,  you  will  ask, 
what  impression  did  all  this  make  on  his  mind?  Why,  he  arose, 
after  imbibing  the  last  drop  of  coffee  in  my  rubber-bottle,  smiled  a 
smile  of  contempt,  and  said  in  three  or  four  jaw-cracking  words 
(in  Arabic)  "No  keef,"and  so  left  me  without  a  thank-you.  The 
word  keef  expresses  comfort,  quiet,  the  dolcefar  niente,  which  is  the 
celestial  idea  of  these  Orientals.  To  lie  back  in  cushions,  sip  coffee, 
and  smoke  tombac,  is  Tceef — heaven  on  earth. 

The  fencing  to  the  fields  and  gardens  around  this  bay  is  usually 
the  large  cactus  or  prickly-pear,  which  reminds  me  that  our  agave 
americanus,  used  for  fencing  in  Florida,  makes  an  impenetrable 
shevaux-de-frise,  with  its  long  pointed  leaves  interlocking,  and  form- 
ing a  most  formidable  barrier  against  stock. 

How  much  the  traveller  will  miss  who  journeys  through  these  Ori- 
ental lands  without  a  Bible  in  Itand,  and  a  Bible  in  head,  and  a 
Bible  in  heart,  can  only  be  estimated  by  one  who  has  seen  what  floods 
of  light  are  shed  by  Holy  Writ  upon  holy  scenes.  To  read  a  passage, 
however  graphic,  of  the  Old  or  N  ew  Testament,  sittingby  the  fireside,  or 
in  the  class  at  school,  is  one  thing,  and,  as  far  as  it  goes,  it  is  a  good 
thing.  Truth  is  cosmopolitan,  and  is  equally  truth  in  Occidental  as 
in  Oriental  lands.  But  to  read  it  amidst  the  same  surroundings  in 
which  it  was  written,  is  quite  another  and  a  better  thing.  Then  the 
casual  allusions,  which  may  have  seemed  clear  before,  will  appear 
doubly  clear ;  while  many  passages  that  the  language  of  nature,  and 
lot  human  language,  must  clear  up,  will  be  illuminated. 

From  my  note-book  I  propose  to  illustrate  this  subject  by  a  few 


202  THE  FOWLS  OF  THE  AIB. 

scenes  in  Holy  Land,  examined  Bible  in  hand.  I  begin  with  an  in- 
cident that  struck  me  as  I  went  from  Beyrout  to  Gebal.  The  location 
of  the  fact  was  at  the  northern  end  of  the  Bay  of  St.  George,  just  as  you 
begin  to  mount  the  pass  before  arriving  at  Nalir-el-Eelb,  or  Dog 
Kiver;  the  season  is  the  sowing-time  of  grain. 

Here,  as  I  ride  slowly  through  this  petty  inclosure  of  an  acre  or 
two,  whose  "  landmark,"  a  stone  wall,  is  scarcely  high  enough  to 
confine  a  skipping  lamb,  let  me  read  the  narrative  in  Mark  iv.,  and 
watch  the  husbandman's  operations  while  he  sows  his  grain  :  "  There 
went  out  a  sower  to  sow."  This  poor  fellah,  or  native  farmer,  has 
also  come  out  from  yonder  village,  in  the  nook  of  the  mountains, 
several  miles  away,  for  he  dare  not  sleep,  nor  keep  his  little  pair  of 
plow-heifers  outside  of  stone  walls,  lest  the  robber  come  upon  him 
unawares  and  impoverish  him. 

"  And  it  came  to  pass,  as  he  sowed,  some  fell  by  the  wayside,  and 
the  fowls  of  the  air  came  and  devoured  it  up."  Look  how  busy  they  are 
yonder.  There  are  the  sparrows  (called  by  naturalists  the  passer 
salicicola  and  the  passer  montanus  and  the  passer  cisalpina)  and 
other  grain-eating  birds. 

"  And  some  fell  on  stony  ground,  where  it  had  not  much  earth ; 
and  immediately  it  sprung  up,  because  it  had  no  depth  of  earth ;  but 
when  the  sun  was  up,  it  was  scorched,  and  because  it  had  no  root,  it 
withered  away."  Look  in  the  skirts  of  the  inclosure  yonder,  next 
the  fence.  The  earth  is  but  a  half  inch  deep  on  those  rocks. 
And  how  warm  the  soil  is  to  the  feel.  Doubtless  this  grain  will 
spring  up  most  quickly  of  all  that  he  is  sowing ;  but  there  is  no 
depth  of  earth;  it  can  have  no  root;  it  must  wither  away. 

"  And  some  fell  among  thorns,  and  the  thorns  grew  up  and  choked 
it,  and  it  yielded  no  fruit."  Look  yonder,  in  that  recess  of  the  hills, 
how  dense  the  thorns.  The  withered  old  woman  whom  we  met  a 
few  minutes  since,  bearing  her  bundle  of  sticks,  gathered  them  from 
this  thicket  of  the  "  camel's  thorn,"  supposed  by  some  to  be  even  the 
same  spiny  growth  of  which  our  Saviour's  plaited  crown  was  woven. 
Think  you  that  the  grain  which  our  sower  is  scattering  there  can 
ever  come  to  maturity?  Surely  no;  it  will  be  outgrown  by  the 
thorns ;  choked  by  them ;  rendered  fruitless. 

"  And  others  fell  on  good  ground,  and  did  yield  fruit,  that  sprung 
up  and  increased  and  brought  forth ;  some  thirty,  some  sixty,  and 
some  an  hundred."  Look  at  this  fat  soil.  A  generation  back  it 
was  hard,  blue  limestone,  like  the  stony  cliffs  overhanging  it.  Un- 


SOWING  THE   SEED.  203 

der  the  bright  showers  of  heaven,  and  the  quickening  sunshine,  it 
has  kindly  yielded  as  we  now  see  it.    For,  as  Pope  says, 

"  The  seas  shall  fail,  the  skies  in  smoke  decay,  | 

Rocks  fall  to  dust,  and  mountains  melt  away." 

All  the  fertilizing  phosphates  and  carbonates,  and  other  chemical 
elements  that  mother-earth  so  covets  in  her  transforming  processes, 
are  here ;  and  upon  these  level  flats,  where  the  birds  dare  not  alight, 
where  the  thorns  cannot  encroach,  where  there  is  ample  depth  of 
earth  ;  here  in  this  "  good  ground,"  the  poor  man's  grain  will  spring 
up ;  will  increase ;  will  bring  forth.  Here  the  beautiful  language 
of  our  Masonic  Monitor  concerning  mother-earth  will  be  realized. 

Has  not  the  quarter-hour  been  well  spent?  As  I  mount  and 
ride  forward  upon  my  way,  let  me  try  my  memory  upon  a-paraphrase 
of  this  divine  narative,  which  I  composed  many  yearo  ago.* 

He  that  hath  ears  to  hear 

May  listen  now, 

"While  I  shall  tell,  in  mystic  words  indeed, 
Of  a  good  husbandman  who  took  his  seed, 

And  went  to  sow. 

Some  by  the  wayside  fell ; — 

On  breezes  borne, 

The  fowls  of  heaven  flew  down,  a  greedy  train, 
And  snatched  with  hasty  appetite  the  grain, 
Till  all  was  gone. 

Some  fell  upon  a  rock ; 

And  greenly  soon 

They  sprouted  as  for  harvest,  strong  and  fair; 
But  when  the  summer  sun  shone  hotly  there, 

They  wilted  down. 

Some  fell  among  the  thorns, — 

A  fertile  soil ; 

But  ere  the  grain  could  raise  its  timid  head, 
The  accursed  weeds  luxuriantly  o'erspread, 

And  choked  them  all. 

But  some  on  the  good  ground, 

God's  precious  mould, 

Where  sun,  breeze,  dew,  and  showers  apportioned  well ; 
And  in  the  harvest,  smiling  swains  did  tell 

An  hundredfold  1 

*  The  text  of  my  paraphrase  is  that  in  the  eighth  chapter  of  Lake. 


804 


STUPIDITY  OF  TOURISTS. 


Need  I  say  that  all  this  comes  naturally  to  mind,  while  journeying 
throu-h  these  Bible  lauds?  I  pity  the  traveller  who  has  enjoyed 
such  opportunities  as  a  visit  to  Palestine  at  the  present  day  affords, 
and  yet  has  not  increased  his  knowledge  in,  and  his  love  for,  the 
Holy  Scriptures. 


ANTIOCHUS   VII.,    KING    OF 


COIN-NOTES  EXPLANATOY  OF  PAGE  498. 

The  coins  so  forcibly  delineated  on  page  498,  are  thus  named, 
beginning  at  the  top  and  reading  the  lines  toward  the  right  hand : 
Dentella ;  Palermo ;  Seleucus  ;  Antiochus  II. ;  Antiochus  III. ; 
Alexander  II.;  Demetrius  Nicator ;  Antiochus  YI. ;  Seleucui 
Callinicus ;  Hcraclea ;  Seleucus  III. ;  Mamerco. 


CHAPTER  XIIL 

BEYKOUT. 

BEGIN  this  chapter  by  describing  my  visit  to  the  Protest- 
ant Cemetery,  where  the  black  cypresses  shoot  up  their 
pyramidal  cones  into  the  sky,  and  where,  of  all  places  on 
earth,  lies,  our  brother,  the  man  of  eloquence,  earnestness, 
and  deep  piety,  Rev.  Pliny  Fisk.  Among  the  dead  who 
calmly  repose  under  the  thick  shade  of  these  mourning  cypresses, 
this  man  is  most  worthy  of  honor  in  Masonic  memories.  When  this 
earth  shall  restore  those  that  are  asleep  in  her,  and  the  dust  those 
that  dwell  in  silence,  anft  the  secret  places  shall  deliver  those  souls 
that  were  committed  unto  them  (2  Esdras  vii.  32),  the  form  of  our 
first  Protestant  missionary,  who  gave  his  young  life  here  to  his  work, 
will  lead  all  the  rest. 

We  may  not  be  able  to  understand  the  fascination- that  draws  us 
to  the  graveside  of  such  men  and  holds  us  solemnly  there ;  but  it 
exists,  and  often  men  of  the  greatest  intelligence  are  most  free  to 
acknowledge  the  influence. 

I  cannot  do  better,  in  this  connection,  than  to  insert  an  article, 
written  in  pencil,  sitting  upon  this  tomb,  and  afterwards  published  in 
an  American  journal. 

THE  MASON-MISSIONARY. 

In  the  Protestant  graveyard  at  Beyrout,  in  the  Holy  Land,  is  a 
modest  structure,  built  of  the  Lebanon  limestone,  inscribed  at  the 
top,  "  Rev.  Pliny  Fisk,  died  Oct.  23,  1825,  M.  33  years."  The  writer, 
in  company  with  Brother  Samuel  Hallock,  first  visited  this  hallowed 
spot  on  the  23d  of  March,  1868,  and  plucked  a  sprig  from  the  funeral 
cypress-tree  that  grows  straight  and  tall  at  the  head  of  the  grave. 
His  emotions  are  expressed  in  the  lines  following. 

The  Rev.  Pliny  Fisk  was  the  first  American  missionary  to  the 
Holy  Land.  He  came  here  full  of  hopes  and  holy  impulses  in  the 


206  THE  MUSE   UNDER  THE   CTPBES8. 

Master's  work.  His  youth,  his  zeal,  his  lovely  spirit,  overflowing 
with  kindly  sentiments,  won  him  hosts  of  friends,  and,  had  he  lived, 
doubtless  the  mission  here  had  been  in  advance  of  what  it  now  is. 
Bnt  it  was  not  so  to  be.  The  Master  called  him  up  "  higher,"  and  he 
passed  beyond. 

Brother  Fisk  was  a  Freemason.  At  the  period  of  his  entrance 
upon  this  work,  as  the  records  of  the  Grand  Lodge  of  Vermont  show, 
the  fraternity  assisted  him  with  money  and  moral  encouragement. 
I  have  thought  recently  that  perhaps  my  own  mission  to  the  Holy 
Land  was  partly  suggested  by  reading,  several  years  ago,  this  Masonic 
history  of  Pliny  Fisk : 

'Neath  our  weeping,  'neath  our  weeping, 
Lies  the  young  disciple  sleeping. 

Jesus  moved  him  with  his  story, 

Promised  him  the  heavenly  glory, 
While  his  vows  of  service  keeping. 

Earnest  spirit,  earnest  spirit, 
How  he  did  that  fire  inherit! 

How,  to  seek  the  lost,  did  wander, 

Rent  his  home-ties  all  asunder, 
And  his  martyr's  crown  did  merit. 

Oh,  to  see  him ;  oh,  to  see  him ; 

When  the  stroke  of  death  did  free  him  I 
Burst  the  chains  that  long  impeded, 
Quenched  the  sorrows  he  had  heeded; 

Angels  to  his  home  convey  him. 

Blessed  resting,  blessed  resting, 

Not  a  jar  of  earth  molesting ; 
Leaves  of  cypress  sigh  above  him, 
Breathe  the  faith  that  once  did  move  him, 

Green  and  fragrant  life  attesting. 

A  friend,  after  reading  this  article,  gave  me  a  quotation,  which  4 
add  to  the  rest : 

So  may  some  gentle  muse, 

With  lucky  words,  favor  my  destined  urn, 

And,  as  he  passes,  turn 
And  bid  fair  peace  be  to  my  sable  shroud! 

After  composing  these  notes  concerning  the  man  of  God,  I  dis- 

covered,  m  old  files  of  the  Missionary  Herald,  copious  extracts  from 

own  diary,  together  with  biographical  details,  from  which  1 


DUTIFUL:  FAITHFUL:  AFFECTIONATE.  20'i 

cull  some  additional  thoughts.  Every  Freemason  feels  interested  to 
know  that  the  American  Mission  to  Syria,  now  the  most  prosperous 
and  successful  of  all  the  missionary  operations  upon  the  face  of  the 
earth,  was  initiated  by  a  Freemason,  assisted  by  Masonic  funds  and 
other  encouragements  from  the  "great  fraternity."  Will  not  the 
time  come  when  Freemasons  will  unite  in  erecting  a  monument  to 
this  Masonic  apostle  ? 

Pliny  Fisk,  the  fourth  son  of  Ebenezer  and  Sarah  Fisk,.was  born 
at  Shelburne,  Franklin  county,  Massachusetts,  June  24,  1792. 
From  early  youth  he  was  distinguished  for  an  engaging  disposition 
and  unusual  sobriety.  Persevering  application  was  a  prominent  trait 
in  his  disposition.  As  a  son,  he  was  faithful,  dutiful,  and  affectionate. 
He  diligently  improved  his  scanty  literary  advantages,  and  entered 
Middlebury  College,  Connecticut,  in  1811,  graduating  August,  1814. 
In  January,  1815,  he  was  licensed  to  preach  the  gospel.  From  1815 
to  1818  he  pursued  a  regular  course  of  divinity  in  the  Theological 
Seminary  at  Andover,  and  was  then  appointed,  in  connection  with 
Mr.  Parsons,  to  the  Palestine  mission.  On  the  third  of  November, 
1819,  he  sailed  for  that  country.  He  engaged  in  Oriental  studies  at 
Smyrna,  while  Mr.  Parsons  made  a  preliminary  survey  of  the  Holy 
Land.  In  April,  1823,  Mr.  Fisk  entered  Jerusalem,  and  pursued  his 
labors  there  during  the  first  year.  Then  he  established  his  mission 
at  Beyrout,  where,  on  the  23d  of  October,  1825,  he  expired,  a  victim 
to  one  of  the  fevers  of  the  country. 

Among  all  who  have  given  their  lives  to  missionary  labors  in 
foreign  lands,  few  possessed  so  happy  a  combination  of  qualities  for 
the  work  as  Mr.  Fisk.  The  pointed  and  inveterate  hostility  of  the 
enemies  of  the  Gospel,  were  met  with  that  union  of  firmness  and 
gentleness  best  calculated  to  subdue  them  to  the  obedience  of  the 
faith.  The  instructions  given  him  by  the  society  under  whose 
charge  he  was  operating,  strike  the  keynote  of  all  his  labors  . 

"  From  the  heights  of  the  Holy  Land,  from  Calvary,  from  Olivet, 
and  from  Zion,  you  will  take  an  extended  view  of  the  wide- spread 
desolations  and  variegated  scenes  presenting  themselves  on  every  side 
to  Christian  sensibility;  and  will  survey,  with  earnest  attention,  the 
various  tribes  and  classes  of  fellow-beings  who  dwell  in  that  land 
and  in  the  surrounding  country.  The  two  grand  inquiries  ever 
present  to  your  mind  will  be,  What  good  can  be  done,  and  by  what 
means?  What  can  be  done  for  the  Jews?  what  for  the  Pagans  ?  what 
for  the  Mohammedans  ?  what  for  the  Christians  ?  what  for  the 
people  in  Palestine  ?  what  for  those  in  Egypt,  in  Syria,  in  Persia,  in 


208  EARLY  SUMMONED. 

Armenia,  in    other   countries   to  which  your    inquiries    may    be 
extended  ?  " 
Upon  his  death-bed,  Mr.  Fisk  dictated  the  following  letter  to  his 

father : 

"  BEYROUT,  Oct.  20, 1S25. 

"  My  beloved,  aged  father :  I  compose  a  few  Hues  for  you  upon  a 
sick,  probably  a  dying  bed.  When  you  gave  me  up  for  this  mission, 
you  gave  me  up  for  life  and  death.  You  know  to  whom  to  look  for 
consolation  and  support.  The  same  God  who  has  comforted  you  so 
many  years,  under  so  many  troubles,  will  comfort  you  under  this. 
You  know  His  consolations  are  neither  few  nor  small.  I  leave  these 
lines  as  a  pledge  to  you,  and  my  brothers  and  sisters,  my  nephews 
and  nieces,  that  I  love  you  all  most  dearly,  though  so  long  separated 
from  you.  I  hope  all,  or  nearly  all,  our  number  have  been  enabled 
to  give  themselves  to  Christ,  and  that  we  shall  meet  with  our  departed 
mother  in  heaven." 

He  died  on  Sabbath  morning  at  3  o'clock.  As  soon  as  the  news 
of  his  death  was  announced,  all  the  flags  of  the  different  Consulates 
were  suspended  at  half-mast.  His  funeral  was  attended  at  4  P.M. 
the  same  day,  in  the  presence  of  a  numerous  and  orderly  concourse 
of  people. 

And  now  for  some  account  of  the  city  of  Beyrout.  A  writer  de- 
scribes it  as  exceedingly  beautiful.  The  promontory  upon  which  it 
stands  is  triangular,  the  apex  projecting  three  miles  into  the  Medi- 
terranean, and  the  base  running  along  the  foot  of  Lebanon.  It 
occupies  the  southern  horn  of  the  crescent  of  the  Masonic  Bay,  as 
the  rocky  pass  at  the  mouth  of  Dog  Eiver  occupies  the  northern 
horn.  The  southwestern  side  of  this  promontory,  which  I  peram- 
bulated one  day  on  foot,  is  composed  of  loose  drifting  sand,  with  the 
aspect  of  a  desert ;  but  the  northwestern  side  is  very  different.  The 
shore-line,  which  I  frequently  traversed  in  search  of  shells  and  gen- 
eral* information,  is  formed  of  u  range  of  irregular,  deeply-indented 
rocks  and  cliffs.  Between  these  rocks  the  ground  rises  gradually, 
for  a  mile  or  two,  to  the  height  of  200  feet  In  the  middle  of  the 
shore-line  stands  the  city ;  first,  a  dense  nucleus  of  substantial  build- 
ings; then  a  broad  margin  of  picturesque  villas,  embowered  in 
foliage,  running  up  to  the  summit  of  the  heights;  then  the  mulberry 
groves,  covering  the  acclivities,  and  here  and  there  groups  of  palms 
and  cypresses.  The  population  of  the  city  is  about  75,000,  one-third 
of  them  being  Mohammedans,  the  rest  Christians  and  Jews.  It  ia 
growing  fast  in  size  and  importance. 

As  my  headquarters  were  at  Beyrout,  and  for  nearly  four  months 


SOCIAL   LIFE   IN   BEYEOUT. 

I  was  passing  in  and  out  of  the  city,  I  am  competent  to  affirm  that 
the  only  city  in  Palestine  or  Syria  where  there  is  any  "  social  life," 
in  the  sense  that  Americans  attach  to  the  term,  is  Beyrout.  At 
Jerusalem  there  are  but  a  few  foreign  families,  not  enough  to  form 
a  circle  for  social  life,  while  in  no  other  Syrian  city  is  there  even  so 
much  as  at  Jerusalem.  But  at  Beyrout  are  found  all  the  materials 
for  society,  as  genial  and  cheerful  as  those  at  home,  and  well  are 
they  manipulated. 

There  is  given,  through  the  cooler  seasons,  a  weekly  series  of  lec- 
tures upon  historical,  educational,  and  scientific  subjects,  that  would 
bear  honorable  comparison  with  those  in  any  country.  During  the 
winter  of  1867-8,  among  the  topics  handled  were  "  Petra,"  by  Rev.  Mr. 
Dodge ;  "  Abyssinia,"  by  Bishop  Gobat ;  "  Turkey  in  Europe,"  by  Rev. 
Mr.  "Washburn,  and  other  subjects  by  Col.  Churchill,  Mr.  J.  Aug. 
Johnson  (the  American  Consul-General),  and  other  gentlemen  of 
repute.  These  were  given  at  private  houses,  thrown  open  to  all  re- 
spectable visitors.  The  lectures  occupy  about  an  hour  each,  and  are 
followed  by  a  distribution  of  tea  and  cakes,  offered  with  a  hospitality 
that  is  truly  refreshing.  I  attended  several  of  these  stances  with 
ever-increasing  pleasure. 

A  society  of  young  gentlemen  was  formed  at  Beyrout,  in  1867, 
entitled,  "The  Once-a-Week  Club,"  which  met  every  Wednesday 
evening,  at  the  house  of  Brother  Samuel  Hallock.  Modeled  partly 
upon  the  old-fashioned  system  of  debating  societies,  this  club 
embraced  other  features  that  made  its  assemblies  pleasant  to  all  con- 
cerned. There  were  about  twenty  members,  and  various  honorary 
members,  of  whom  I  was  one. 

But  these  superficial  demonstrations  of  social  life  are  only  slight 
indications  of  the  great  under-current.  The  truth  is'that,  in  a  foreign 
country  like  Syria,  people  lay  aside,  to  a  great  extent,  those  social 
distinctions  which,  at  home,  form  an  almost  impassable  barrier  be- 
tween them  and  their  neighbors.  "  The  nobility  and  gentry,"  as 
they  are  so  magniloquently  designated  in  the  English  papers,  or  the 
"  upper  classes,"  as  the  American  press  somewhat  vaguely  styles  them, 
finding  no  other  members  of  the  "upper  classes,"  still  less  of  the 
"nobility  and  gentry,"  with  whom  they  can  associate,  come  gradually 
down  from  the  upper  and  mysterious  atmosphere  in  which  they  were 
born,  and  cultivate  the  social  spirit  with  people  who  are  their  equals 
in  all  but  the  accident  of  birth.  Very  gracefully  do  they  develop 
themselves.  No  persons  can  make  themselves  more  agreeable. 

14 


210  PERFECTION   OF   HOSPIlALITTf. 

At  Beyrout,  this  blending  of  respectable  people,  regardless  of  otlu-r 
distinctions,  forms  the  principal  charm  of  society.  At  church,  at 
funeral,  at  lecture,  and  in  family  parties,  they  mingle,  each  bringing 
his  share  to  the  enjoyment  of  the  whole ;  some  of  music,  some  of 
conversation,  etc. 

The  religious  circles  are  equally  free  and  social.  A  Bible-class, 
under  the  superintendence  of  Rev.  Mr.  Robinson,  a  Scotch  minister, 
who  has  charge  of  the  Beyrout  church,  included  some  of  the  best- 
instructed  spiritual  minds  that  I  ever  met  in  such  a  circle.  At  the 
regular  Sunday  morning  service,  in  English,  all  attend  and  blend 
their  voices  in  the  psalmody,  as,  doubtless,  their  hearts  in  the  prayers. 
So  many  ministers,  of  so  many  denominations,  are  found  among  the 
tourists  to  this  country,  that  the  variety  of  pulpit  gifts  is  uncom- 
monly great,  while,  it  is  to  be  presumed,  each  one  who  is  thus  called 
upon  to  officiate,  exerts  his  best  efforts. 

The  best  English  and  American  periodicals,  religious  and  secular, 
are  taken  by  the  English-speaking  population  here  in  great  num- 
bers. These  are  exchanged  and  loaned  or  distributed,  in  a  manner 
partaking  of  the  free-and-easy  spirit  that  animates  the  whole  circle, 
until  there  is  no  lack  of  good  reading  for  all.  A  considerable  library  is 
attached  to  the  American  Mission,  and  there  is  a  kind  of  Reading  Club 
Subscription,  for  the  purchase  of  periodicals  and  cheaper  literature. 

But  one  of  the  most  agreeable  features  of  "  social  life  in  Beyrout " 
remains  to  be  described.  During  the  hot  season,  say  from  June 
15th  to  October  1st,  existence  in  Beyrout  is  intolerable  to  foreigners. 
Every  family,  therefore,  has  a  summer  residence  in  some  one  of  the 
innumerable  villages  that  dot  the  cool  and  breezy  mountain-sides 
overhanging  Beyrout  on  the  east.  Here  an  unbounded  hospitality 
is  maintained,  that  goes  right  to  the  heart  of  the  stranger.  Here  he 
can  find,  among  the  most  refined  classes  of  people,  a  yielding  of  social 
position,  an  open  hand  and  heart,  a  blending  of  luxury  with  plain- 
ness, and  generosity  with  all,  that  would  be  hard  to  find  anywhere 
else.  Those  who  have  spent  a  summer  among  these  people,  in  the 
range  of  the  Lebanons,  have  nothing  further  to  look  for  to  realize 
the  perfection  of  hospitality. 

From  the  highest  point  of  Bassoul's  Hotel  the  view  by  starlight  is 
a  charming  one.  Below  are  the  gleaming  roofs,  the  dark  shadows  of 
winding  streets,  the  outlines  of  a  battlemented  wall,  a  castle  by  the 
wo,  the  waters  of  the  harbor,  silvery  with  the  starlight,  a  faint  view 
of  prostrate  pillars  of  Egyptian  granite  at  the  landing-place,  the  dark 


NOTE-TAKING   IN  THE   BAZAARS.  211 

sweep  of  the  pines  beyond  the  city,  and  all  closed  in,  on  the  east,  by 
the  sombre,  solemn  ramparts  of  Lebanon. 

As  life  in  Beyrout  is  analogous  to  all  Oriental  experience,  I  give 
here  quite  a  number  of  extracts  from  my  diary,  mostly  made  in  a 
day's  stroll  through  the  bazaars,  and  amidst  the  din  and  turmoil  of 
the  streets.  I  was  under  the  effects  of  that  southern  wind  called 
KJiamsin,  which  Dr.  W.  M.  Thomson  has  so  well  described  in  his 
Land  and  Book,  and  viewed  things  in  a  cynical  mood,  yet  not  so 
much  so  as  to  prevent  accurate  details. 

Behold  my  notes,  scratched  amidst  the  bustle  and  yells  of  an  Arab 
market-place !  Saffron :  piles  of  it  sold  here ;  name  from  the  Arabic 
saphor,  signifying  hot;  carried  by  pilgrims  to  England,  A.D.  1539. 
After  turning  half  a  dozen  corners  in  these  narrow  lanes,  it  will  defy 
anything  but  an  intelligent  dog  to  tell  where  you  are.  I  have 
already  lost  my  way  on  three  several  days  going  from  Hallock's  to 
the  American  Consulate.  The  tools  used  by  these  mechanics  would 
give  an  American  artisan  the  horrors.  The  ancients  used  saws  for 
wood-cutting,  made,  probably,  of  iron ;  though  the  saws  -from  the 
Egyptian  tombs  of  the  same  period  are  of  bronze  (that  is,  copper  and 
tin^alloy).  The  stones  for  the  Temple  of  Solomon  were  cut  with  saws 
(1  Kings  vii.  9),  just  as  the  blocks  of  stone  from  the  old  Temple 
quarry  under  Jerusalem,  whiih  I  brought  home  with  me,  were  taken 
out  with  saws,  so  soft  is  the  rock  in  its  native  condition.  Saws  were 
used  in  punishing  criminals  (2  Sam.  xii.  31,  and  1  Chron.  xx.  3), 
and  these,  as  the  text  shows,  were  of  iron.  The  saws  of  the  Egyptians 
were  single-handed  and  straight,  and  this  is  the  only  pattern  that  I 
noticed  in  Palestine ;  but  in  Nineveh  the  sculptures,  nearly  as  old  as 
Solomon's  time,  prove  that  the  Assyrians  used  the  cross-cut  or  double- 
handled  saw.  Hyssop:  it  "springeth  out  of  the  wall"  abundantly 
here,  and  awaits  such  a  botanist  as  Solomon  to  describe  it  (1  Kings 
iv.  33),  for  I  notice  that  no  two  writers  agree  as  to  its  identity. 
Sparroiu :  this  bird  is  on  every  house-top,  building  nests  on  every 
jutting,  and  stuffing  materials  of  nests  into  every  crevice.  Lucky 
there  are  few  cats  here  to  worry  them;  cats  are  only  once  mentioned 
in  the  Bible,  and  that  in  the  apocryphal  book  of  Baruch.  Blindness  : 
blind  "  beggars  by  the  wayside"  in  sufficient  abundance  to  deplete  my 
spare  change ;  I  find  the  eighth-piastre  pieces  capital  coin  for  this 
purpose ;  being  worth  only  half  a  cent  a  piece,  I  can  give  to  a  score 
of  applicants  without  impoverishing  myself.  Battlements:  every 
roof  more  than  six  or  eight  feet  above  the  ground  has  a  battle- 
ment, according  to  the  requirements  of  the  old  Jewish  law.  Bazaars : 
these  and  the  mechanics'  shops  are  unending  sources  of  curiosity 
and  instruction.  Meal-times:  awkward  hours  to  Americans,  to  eat 
at  8  o'clock;  nothing  but  bread,  jam,  fruit,  and  coffee,  and  then  wait 
until  noon  for  breakfast ;  I  notice  strangers  seem  wolfish  about  10 
A.M.  for  want  of  their  steak.  Dr.  Thomson :  a  bluff,  genial,  weather- 


NOTE-TAKING   IN  THE   BAZAARS. 

beaten  old  Buckeye  (Ohio)  American,  ready  to  communicate  all  that 
he  knows,  in  the  most  affable  and  unpretending  manner.  His  wife 
(second  wife,  the  first  died  at  Jerusalem),  an  Italian  lady,  cordial  and 
kind.  Clothing:  had  full  suit  made  of  French  cloth,  worth  in 
New  York  $8  per  yard,  for  $28  the  entire  suit.  Palestine  Lodge  is 
in  a  low  condition — want  of  harmony  among  the  brethren;  scarcely 
had  a  meeting  for  a  year ;  Dr.  Brigstock,  a  most  intelligent  physician ; 
lately  W.  M.  One  of  the  Past  Masters  is  an  Israelite.  Women. 
under  the  white,  enveloping  sheet  they  spread  out  their  arms  cun- 
ningly, to  appear  corpulent,  thinking  it  "  an  especial  honor,"  as  the 
old  traveller  Sandys  remarked,  "  to  be  fat ;  and  many  of  them  are 
fat!"  So  far  as  their  faces  are  concerned,  I  can  say  nothing,  for  I 
did  not  see  the  face  of  a  Turkish  woman  all  the  time  of  my  pilgrim- 
age in  the  Holy  Land.  But  among  the  lower  classes  of  the  Arabs 
less  care  is  taken  to  conceal  the  countenance  from  strangers,  and  of 
them  I  can  repeat  another  observation  of  the  same  ancient,  accurate 
traveller:  "I  saw  divers  of  the  women  with  their  chins  stained  with 
blue  knots  and  flowers,  made  by  pricking  the  skin  with  needles  and 
rubbing  it  over  with  the  juice* of  an  herb  (henna),  which  will  never 
wear  out  again."  Snails:  a  wonderful  place  for  them;  very  large 
and  edible  for  those  who  hanker  after  them.  Their  firm,  crescent- 
shaped  jaws,  and  tongues,  with  sharp,  hooked,  rasping  denticles  to  the 
number  of  10,000  or  more,  on  a  bit  of  membrane  not  a  quarter  of  an 
inch  long  nor  half  so  wide,— all  this  ie  very  well  in  natural  history, 
b/i:  when  it  comes  to  eating  them,  I  prefer  sardines.  Freemasons: 
/  found  here  Brother  Todd,  a  member  of  the  lodge  at  Newburyport, 
Massachusetts;  Gen.  Starring,  a  Chicago  Mason;  and  Brother  J. 
M.  Himes,  of  Atlas  Lodge,  New  York;  all  nearly  through  with  their 
Syrian  travels.  The  snows  on  Mount  Lebanon,  always  an  obstacle 
to  travel  in  the  month  of  March,  were  deeper  in  1868,  as  I  was  in- 
formed by  Dr.  Thomson  (who  has  been  in  this  country  thirty-six 
years),  than  he  had  ever  known  them  before.  A  number  of  travellers 
were  detained  at  Beyrout  on  this  account,  desiring  to  visit  Damascus, 
but  unable  to  cross  the  mountains.  I  made  early  and  frequent  calls 
upon  the  United  States  Consul-General,  J.  Augustus  Johnson, 
favorably  known  in  American  journals  as  a  vigorous  writer.  He 

•eturned  to  New  York  in  1870.  I  brought  him  letters  from  his  wife, 
then  visiting  Bethany,  West  Virginia,  the  residence  of  her  father, 
the  veteran  Jerusalem  explorer  and  missionary,  Dr.  J.  T.  Barclay. 
Mr.  Johnson  met  me  cordially,  and  tendered  me  all  the  aid  in  his 
power  to  further  the  purposes  of  my  visit  He  ought  to  be  a  Mason, 
as  all  the  English  Consuls  are.  Fortunately,  there  is  a  library,  well- 
elected  and  well-filled,  attached  to  the  Protestant  mission  here,  and  I 
shall  read,  while  in  this  country,  Kenrick's  Phosnicia,  Lamartine's  Pil- 
grimage, Hasselquist's  Oriental  Botany,  Anderson's  Geological  Survey 

.  byria,  and  Kenan's  new  work  on  Phoenicia,  just  coming  out  in  parts.* 

•  Since  returning  home,  I  have  purchased  the  numbers  of  this  splendid  production 
w  far  as  issued  .Mission  de  Phmicie,  and  can  heartily  recommend  it  to  all  who  read 
brench,  as  a  noble  contribution  to  Oriental  literature 


XOTE-TAKING    IN  THE   BAZAARS.  2 13 

An  educated  Syrian,  in  the  provision -store  here,  described  the  Dead 
Sea  to  me  with  accuracy,  spreading  meal  upon  his  hat  and  delinea- 
ting the  topography  with  his  finger,  just  as  the  plan  of  the  city  of 
Alexander  was  first  drawn  by.  the  architect  when  inaugurating  that* 
work.  In  looking  at  the  antique  weights  and  measures  used  by  these 
people,  it  is  a  good  time  to  commence  the  inquiry,  how  far  they  can 
be  traced  to  that  one  necessarily  material  centre  (the  Great  Pyramid 
of  Cheops,  in  Egypt),  from  which  those  material  things  called  weights 
and  measures,  in  a  primeval  age.  were  divinely  distributed  to  every 
leading  people.  Groups  of  women  returning  from  the  cemetery, 
wrapped  in  shrouds,  white  as  the  "White  Lady  of  Avenel."  No 
wonder  they  catch  catarrhs,  rheumatisms,  fevers,  blindness ;  sitting 
through  such  damp  days  as  these  on  the  cold  ground  upon  the 
graves.  The  hired  mourners,  who  weep,  howl,  beat  the  breast, 
etc.,  by  contract,  are  wiser.  They  only  go  out  professionally,  and 
remain  but  a  few  minutes.  One  hundred  of  these  drygoods  stores 
would  not  make  one  such  establish ment  as  in  the  Bowery,  New 
York,  constitutes  a  fair  retail  store.  It  was  here  at  Beyrout  that  Greg- 
ory was  coming,  A.D.  231,  to  attend  the  famous  law-school,  when  he 
met  Origen,  and  was  converted  to  Christianity.  Three  fine  columns 
of  gray  granite  are  standing  behind  the  donkey-stables  of  Beyrout, 
representing  three  of  the  angles  of  a  perfect  square,  the  fourth  being 
absent ;  these  noble  pillars  are  some  thirty  feet  long,  and  thick  in 
proportion.  I  have  dedicated  them  to  Freemasonry,  and  styled  them 
Faith,  Hope,  and  Charity,  the  three  theological  virtues  of  our  order. 
Beyrout  is  said  to  be  the  cleanest  place  in  Syria.  A  fountain  with 
an  Arabic  inscription,  said  to  be  an  invocation  to  God  for  a  blessing 
to  him  who  drinks;  in  this  spirit,  I  took  often  and  copious  draughts. 
But  there  is  a  blessing  in  cool,  sweet  water  everywhere,  and  especially 
in  the  East.  The  presbyter,  Pamphylus,  was  born  here  A.D.  275, 
and  martyred  A.D.  300.  He  had  collected  a  very  complete  library  of 
Christian  literature,  all  destroyed  long  since.  The  weather  here  has 
had  close  observers.  Dr.  Klein,  comparing  the  mean  annual  fre- 
quency of  thunder-storms  throughout  the  world,  says  that  while  Java 
has  from  159  to  110,  and  Sitka  1£  per  annum,  Beyrout  has  4. 
"  Bark  from  Boston,  3,200  bbls.  capacity,  freighted  with  kerosene  in 
barrels  and  cases."  Adv.  Sept.  12, 1870.  This  advertisement  reminds 
me  that  the  only  merchantable  commodity  sent  by  the  United  States 
to  this  country  is  kerosene,  of  which  three  or  four  cargoes  are  lauded 
here  annually  from  Boston.  The  return  freight  is  wool.  'Twas  a 
droll  sight  to  see  my  French  tailor's  row  of  Arab  journeymen,  squat- 
ting in  the  street,  outside  the  shop,  stitching  away  for  dear  life.  Hal- 
lock  particularly  requests  me,  when  I  walk  on  the  flat  roof  of  his 
house,  not  to  look  down  into  the  adjacent  courtyard.  His  neighbor, 
a  chaste  Mohammedan,  has  his  hareem  there,  and  I  might  possibly 
catch  a  glimpse  of  the  faces  of  some  of  his  wives.  Of  course,  after 
such  a  warning,  I  spend  considerable  time  every  day,  looking,  but 
thus  far  in  vain.  Josephus,  in  his  Wars  of  the  Jews  (Wars,  VIL,  iii.  1), 


SJH 


TURKISH   BATHS. 


gives  interesting  details  concerning  Beyrout.  Everybody  who  reads 
travels  in  the  Holv  Land,  expects  to  see  something  upon  the  subject  of 
Turkish  baths.  1  made  an  article,  spiced  with  some  exaggeration, 
that  was  published  in  the  Masonic  department  of  the  !N  ew  York 
Sunday  Dispatch.  In  reading  it,  three  years  afterwards,  I  recognize 
its  general  accuracy.  Only  1  forgot  to  say  that  one  of  those  bath- 
servants  has  been  in  the  profession,  it  is  said,  for  forty  years.  He 
looks  it  He  is  a  Calvin  Edson,  as  I  remember  Calvin,  the  "  Living 
Skeleton  "  of  Barnum's  time,  a  dried-up  old  man,  washed  away  by 
palm-fibre  and  olive-oil  soap.  ' 


COIN   OF  SAEDIS. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

FREEMASONRY  IN   BEYROTJT. 

WAS  disappointed  by  finding  that  none  of  the  American 
missionaries  in  the  Holy  Lund  are  Masons.  The  first  two 
to  that  country,  Mr.  Pliny  Fisk  and  Mr.  Eddy,  became 
members  of  the  Masonic  Order  before  leaving  the  United 
States,  in  1818,  rightly  judging  that  nothing  would  bring 
them  so  near  to  the  hearts  of  the  Mohammedans.  The  consequence 
was,  they  enjoyed  an  intimacy  with  the  natives  such  as  no  mission- 
ary has  done  since ;  and  when  Mr.  Fisk  died,  in  1825,  after  a  short  and 
brilliant  career,  he  was  mourned  for  by  them  with  regrets  that  no 
missionary  now  operating  there  can  expect  to  inspire  among  that 
class.  And  this,  simply  because,  in  addition  to  zeal,  piety,  and  learn- 
ing— all  of  which  our  missionaries  have  abundantly — Mr.  Fisk  had 
the  Masonic  claim,  which  they  have  not. 

The  first  two  men,  not  natives,  whom  I  met  in  Beyrout,  were  Ma- 
sons, guests  at  Bassoul's  Hotel,  where  I  stopped.  I  have  given  their 
names  in  a  preceding  chapter.  The  following  day  I  made  the 
acquaintance  of  Brother  Hallock,  already  alluded  to  more  than 
once,  an  ardent  devotee  of  the  order,  and  afterwards  fell  in  for  a 
moment  with  Brother  General  Starring,  who  was  passing  hastily 
through  the  city.  A  few  weeks  before  my  arrival,  Brother  John  C. 
Breckinridge,  of  Kentucky,  with  whom  I  was  associated  in  the  Grand 
Lodge  of  that  State  as  far  back  as  1853,  spent  a  few  days  here.  From 
time  to  time,  I  enlarged  my  circle  of  fraternal  acquaintance,  and  at 
last,  visiting  a  company  of  white-aproned  brothers,  "  where  the 
lambs  feed  after  their  manner"  (Isaiah  v.  17),  I  am  enabled  to 
examine  and  describe  their  lodge-room. 

An  account  of  tho  orgin  of  Palestine  Lodge,  No.  415,  Beyrout,  is 
given  me  by  Brother  D.  Murray  Lyon,  of  Ayr,  Scotland,  to  whom  I 
wrote  for  information  on  the  subject.  Extract  from  the  records 


feJlB  MASONIC   LODGES   IN   BETROUT. 

of  the  Grand  Lodge  of  Scotland :  "  In  Grand  Committee,  March  4th, 
1861,  the  M.  W.  the  Grand  Master  stated  that  he  had  received  an 
application  for  a  charter  for  a  new  lodge  in  Syria,  to  be  called  The 
Lodge  of  Palestine,  at  Beyrout.  That  the  application  had  come  to 
ais  son,  the  Marquis  of  Tullibardine,  by  the  hands  of  Lieutenant 
Colonel  Burnaby,  Commissioner  of  the  British  Government  to  the 
French  Army  of  Occupation  at  present  in  Syria.  That  Colonel 
Burnaby  intended  to  return  to  Syria  immediately,  and  the  parties 
were  most  anxious  that  the  charter  should,  if  possible,  be  taken  out 
by  him.  The  M.  W.  the  Grand  Master  thereupon  moved  that,  in  the 
special  circumstances  of  the  case,  the  Grand  Committee  should 
authorize  the  issue  of  the  charter  in  question,  and  he  felt  confident 
that  the  Grand  Lodge  would  confirm  their  resolution.  It  was  there- 
fore unanimously  resolved  to  issue  the  charter,  under  the  peculiarly 
pressing  circumstances  of  the  case ;  but  this  should  form  no  prece- 
dent for  the  future."  This  action  was  confirmed  by  the  Grand  Lodge 
at  its  next  session.  On  the  occasion  of  my  visit,  in  1868,  the  lodgej 
had  a  membership  of  about  seventy-five,  scattered  as  far  as  Gaza  < 
on  the  south  and  Bagdad  on  the  east,  and  included  brethren  at  Sidon, 
Acre,  Nablous,  Damascus,  Aleppo,  Hums,  etc.,  etc. 

Since  my  departure,  June,  1868,  the  Grand  Lodge  (Orient)  of 
France  has  established  a  second  lodge  here,  entitled  Le  Liban.  This 
lodge  set  out  with  a  feature  peculiar  to  itself,  described  in  the  Grand 
Lodge  records  thus :  "  Your  Committee  on  Administration  proposes 
to  you  to  sanction  the  remarkable  by-law  of  the  Lodge  Liban,  at 
Beyrout,  which  comprises  the  creation  of  an  establishment  of  relief 
(Relief  Lodge,  or  Board  of  Relief)  for  Masonic  travellers ;  also  a 
library  and  a  Masonic  Tribunal  of  Conciliation,  to  settle  differences 
oetweenthe  brethren,  and  in  their  relation  with  the  outside  world."  I 
cannot  discover  whether  this  idea  was  made  practical  or  not.  This 
lodge  was  installed  January  4th,  1869;  Brother  Lambert,  W.  M.; 
Brother  Haggy,  S.  W. ;  Brother  Mossip,  J.  W.  My  informant  says: 
1 "  It  is  destined  to  throw  out  deep  roots  into  the  Syrian  soil ;  to  spread 
abroad  bright  rays  amidst  ignorance  and  superstition,  and  to  spread 
the  protecting  shadow  of  peace  and  fraternity  over  all."  I  hope  it 
may. 

The  order  of  Freemasonry  at  Beyrout  is  not,  I  regret  to  say, 
in  a  condition  satisfactory  to  the  members  there,  or  creditable  to  the 
great  cause  in  which  the  fraternity  are  engaged.  The  reasons  for 
this  need  not  be  enlarged  upon ;  they  are  such  as  do  not  in  the  least 


MY   MEETING    WITH   NO.  415. 

compromise  the  honor  of  the  individual  craft  at  Beyrout,  nor  will  it 
require  any  extraordinary  effort  to  rerm  ve  them.  Personally  there 
is  the  best  of  feeling  amongst  the  brethren  concerning  future  opera- 
tions, and  I'feel  confident  that  the  opening  of  a  new  era  for  Masonic 
progress  upon  the  Syrian  coast  is  not  distant. 

I  had  postponed  my  intention  to  have  the  good  fellows  of  Bey- 
rout  called  together,  owing  to  the  protracted  absence  of  Brother 
G.  J.  Eldridge,  H.  B.  M.  Consul-General  of  Syria,  late  Master  of  the 
lodge  here  (Palestine  Lodge  No.  415)  and  who  had  been  endowed,  it  *ra& 
understood,  with  special  powers  for  the  extension  of  Freemasonry  in 
this  country.  That  functionary  had  been  away  on  leave  of  absence  tc 
his  native  country  for  nearly  a  year,  during  which  period  little  or 
nothing  had  been  accomplished  in  the  affairs  of  the  lodge,  the  actual 
Master,  Brother  R.  W.  Brigstock,  M.D.,  being  much  engaged  in  the 
engrossing  duties  of  his  profession,  and  the  other  officers  declining 
to  act  in  his  absence.  But  upon  the  return  of  Brother  Eldridge,  a 
general  wish  was  expressed  by  the  fraternity  of  Beyrout  that  we  should 
have  a  meeting,  and  one  was  called  for  Saturday,  the  6th  of  June. 
The  night,  of  course,  was  oppressively  sultry,  yet  the  attendance 
embraced  nearly  all  the  resident  members  of  Beyrout,  about  thirty. 
Amongst  them  were  Brother  Eldridge,  just  named ;  Brother  E.  T.  Rog- 
ers,  Master-elect  of  this  lodge ;  the  present  Master,  Dr.  Brigstock ; 
Brother  Ridley,  an  old  and  highly-respected  merchant  here,  etc.  The 
visitors  included  Brother  Samuel  Hallock,  of  Philadelphia,  Pa.,  and 
others. 

The  extreme  heat  rendering  the  lodge-room  insupportable,  we  used 
the  parlor  of  the  lodge  for  our  meeting.  This  is  a  well-furnished 
apartment,  very  tastily  arranged,  similar  to  those  I  saw  in  Smyrna, 
Alexandria,  Paris,  and  elsewhere.  Here,  after  an  introduction  to  the 
brethren,  most  of,^vhom  spoke  Arabic  only?  I  opened  the  purposes 
of  my  mission  to  Palestine,  my  remarks  being  excellently  interpreted  / 
by  Brother  Rogers,  one  of  the  best  Oriental  scholars  upon  this  coast.*' 
I  said,  in  brief,  that  I  had  come  to  the  land  of  historical  and  Masonic 
associations,  representing  a  large  number  of  the  enterprising  mem- 
bers of  the  fraternity  in  the  United  States ;  that,  in  pursuance  of 
my  mission,  I  had  visited  all  places  particularly  memorable  in  the 
history  of  our  society,  especially  Tyre,  Gebal,  Mount  Lebanon,  the 
Bay  »f  Rafts  (St.  George's  Bay),  Joppa,  and  Jerusalem,  and  had  col- 
lected relics  from  every  part  of  the  land,  that  would  serve  as  tokens 
G  our  friends  at  home ;  that  the  most  profound  interest  is  felt  in 


218  MASONIC  ADDRESS. 

the  United  States  in  all  matters  relative  to  Syria  and  Palestine; 
that  no  questions  will  be  propounded  me,  on  my  return,  with  more 
earnestness  than  those  relating  to  the  condition  of  Freemasonry 
here. 

Then  I  pointed  to  the  world-wide  reach  and  extent  of  our  ancient 
Associations,  showing  them  that  I  had  found  a  group  of  the  mem- 
oers  of  this  fraternity  upon  the  steamer  that  brought  me  to  Liver- 
pool ;  another  upon  the  Mediterranean  steamer ;  a  large  body  of 
/Masons,  representing  seven  or  more  lodges,  at  Smyrna ;  a  company  of 
y  sixteen  Masons  in  Damascus,  and  a  goodly  number  at  Sidon,  Jafia, 
and  Jerusalem;  that  all  these,  without  exception,  seemed  earnest 
and  zealous  in  the  cause,  and  glowed  with  the  desire  to  extend  the 
honorable  and  useful  reputation  of  the  fraternity;  that  the  pros- 
pects were  now  bright  for  the  establishment  of  lodges  at  Damascus 
and  Jerusalem. 

Then  I  sketched  the  principles  and  aims  of  the  Masonic  Institu- 
tion. I  showed  them  that  a  prudent  reticence,  so  rare  in  this 
country,  where  men  talk  more  freely  of  each  other  than  anywhere 
else,  is  one  of  the  fundamental  principles  of  the  order.  That  obedi- 
ence to  the  laws  and  regulations  of  the  society ;  charity  in  relieving 
the  wants  of  the  distressed ;  the  most  scrupulous  honor  in  our  deal- 
ings with  each  other;  promptness  in  recognizing  Masonic  sum- 

.  mouses ;  secrecy  in  preserving  the  fundamental  esotery  of  the  order ; 
fidelity  in  regard  to  exchanged  confidences,  and  profoundest  caution 

\  in  the  admission  of  members  to  the  lodge,  are  essential  to  the  suc- 
cessful workings  of  the  institution  anywhere.  I  assured  them  that 
Freemasonry  stands  very  high  in  the  opinion  of  the  better  classes  in 
Syria  and  Palestine ;  that  is  to  say,  amongst  the  governing  classes 
and  those  who  would  do  more  credit  to  its  affiliation ;  and  that  it 
only  needed  for  the  Masons  of  Beyrout  to  strengthen  themselves ;  to 
establish  a  few  more  lodges  in  the  city;  to  establish  regular  meetings; 
to  publish  their  laws,  aims,  and  principles,  for  the  reading  of  their 
own  members  and  the  outer  world,  and  the  benefits  of  the  royal 
order  would  be  increased  an  hundredfold. 

I  told  them  of  our  methods  of  operation  in  the  United  States ; 
that  our  lodges  held  regular  meetings  in  places  well-known  to  every 
one;  that  they  let  the  surrounding  community  know  who  they  are 
and  where  they  are,  and  what  they  are  endeavoring  to  do  ;  that  they 
publish  a  number  of  journals  devoted  to  the  interests  of  Freemasonry; 
that  when  a  stranger  calls  at  one  of  their  assemblies  there  is  an 


THE   SECRET   MONITOR. 

officer,  the  Senior  Deacon,  specially  charged  with  the  duty  of  wel- 
coming and  accommodating  him,  and  introducing  him  to  the  officers 
and  members  of  the  lodge ;  and  that  his  stay  in  the  place  is  made 
pleasant  in  consequence  of  the  Masonic  associations  thus  formed. 
On  behalf  of  the  great  American  fraternity,  representing  more  than 
one-half  of  all  the  Freemasons  in  the  world,  I  invited  them  to  come 
and  see  us  and  verify  the  statements  I  had  made. 

By  special  request,  I  then  recited  "  The  Level  and  the  Square," 
following  after,  "  Our  Vows."  Both  seemed  to  give  satisfaction.  An 
hour  was  then  spent  in  the  interchange  of  friendly  sentiments.  There 
is  a  fervor  about  these  Syrian  Masons  that  is  extremely  pleasant  to  a 
stranger.  I  was  overwhelmed  with  kind  wishes,  invitations,  and 
solicitations  "  to  come  again,"  and  "  to  come  often,"  and  if  anything 
can  tempt  me  once  more  to  undertake  the  long  journey  from  La 
Grange  to  Beyrout,  it.  will  be  to  duplicate  the  agreeable  sensations 
of  that  evening  among  the  Masons  of  Beyrout. 

Before  dissolving  the  meeting,  one  of  the  lodge-officers  suggested 
that,  as  few  of  the  craft  there  had  ever  received  a  "side  degree"  of 
any  kind,  they  would  be  pleased,  and  perhaps  benefited  by  the  com- 
munication of  the  Secret  Monitor.  Anxious  to  gratify  them,  I 
explained  what  a  "side  degree"  is,  and  the  object  of  this  one.  All 
expressed  their  wish  to  receive  it;  and  certainly,  if  its  uses  are  at  all 
commensurate  with  the  enjoyment  it  gave  that  good  set  of  fellows, 
the  Secret  Monitor,  whoever  got  it  up,  is  not  to  be  sneered  at.  In 
this,  as  in  all  other  inculcations  of  the  evening,  my  words  were  inter- 
preted into  Arabic  to  them  by  Brother  Rogers.  My  general  statements 
were  substantiated  by  Brother  G.  J.  Eldridge,  now  Deputy  Grand 
Master  for  the  District. of  Syria,  and  by  the  other  English-speaking 
Masons  present.  This  assembly  was  one  of  unmingled  enjoyment, 
and  will,  I  think,  do  good. 

I  cannot  close  the  chapter  without  pointing  out  the  chief  difficul- 
ties with  which  the  Masonic  devotee  in  this  country  must  necessarily 
contend,  ty  is  the  necessity  of  working  the  rituals  both  in  French 
and  Arabic.  A  portion  speak  French  only,  and  all  foreigners  in 
Syria  speak  French,  no  macter  what  may  be  their  nationality.  But 
the  natives  generally  only  speak  Arabic.  No  one  in  Syria  has  the 
rituals  in  the  Arabic  language,  and  this  compels  the  Worshipful 
Master  to  extemporize  the  lectures,  covenants,  etc.,  as  he  goes  along, 
a  task  immensely  difficult.  In  a  lodge  that  I  visited  at  Alexandria, 
Egypt  (the  Loge  des  Pyramidcs),  the  work  is  done  alternately  in 


220  RITUALS    IN    ARABIC. 

French  and  Arabic,  and  the  record-books,  which  I  examined,  are 
kept  correspondingly.  But  even  there  the  rituals — (in  all  French 
'odges  the  rituals  are  printed  and  laid  out  on  the  pedestals  for  the 
officers'  use) — are  printed  in  French,  not  in  Arabic,  and  this  repro- 
duces the  difficulty  above  alluded  to. 

Let  one  of  my  readers,  who  is  Master  of  a  lodge,  conceive,  if  he 
can,  the  labor  of  being  compelled  to  translate  into  a  fojeign  tongue, 
clause  by  clause,  the  language  of  the  rituals,  so  that  the  candidate 
may  understand  it.  This  embarrassment,  too,  is  increased  when  that 
foreign  tongue  is  the  Arabic,  an  Oriental  tongue  whose*  phrases  and 
trains  of  thought  are  essentially  different  from  the  French  and  English. 
I  think  I  have  said  enough  to  show  that,  instead  of  blaming  our 
Syrian  brethren  for  their  want  of  progress,  we  should  give  them 
credit  for  what  they  have  done,  and  lend  them  warm  wishes  and 
sympathy  in  their  future  operations. 

The  Masons  of  Beyrout,  and  generally  of  Eastern  lodges,  know 
nothing  of  demitting.  They  may  transfer  their  membership  to  other 
i.  lodges,  or  become  members  of  as  many  other  lodges,  at  the  same 
time,  as  they  choose ;  but,  like  the  Masons  of  Connecticut,  they  are 
charged  no  dues,  and  running  no  risk  of  suspension,  retain  affiliation 
with  their  alma  mater,  their  mother-lodge,  as  long  as  they  live.  In 
conversation  with  them  during  my  various  visits  to  Beyrout,  I  learned 
much  of  the  high  claims  that  charity  makes  upon  them.  I  think 
that  in  foreign  countries  the  society  is  not  so  mucli  a  moral  institution 
as  with  us,  but  has  more  of  the  social  and  benevolent  features. 

Fatherless,  motherless,  sisterless,  brotherless, 
Houseless  and  homeless,  the  wanderer  here, 

having  any  claims  upon  Masonic  charity,  will  realize  them  with 
less  difficulty  than  with  us,  while  the  discipline  due  for  unmasonic 
conduct  will  not  fall  so  promptly  as  in  American  lodges.  One  of 
them  quoted  to  me — 

"The  drying  up  of  a  single  tear  has  more 
Of  honest  fame  than  shedding  seas  of  gore," 

^  and  evidently  considered  that  this  expresses  the  whole  theory  of 
Freemasonry.  Although  LeB^n^liboTge,  No.  415,  is  of  Scotch 
parentage,  yet  it  has  been  worked  under  some  of  those  new-fangled 
whimseys,  as  Southey  calls  them,  those  bizarre  ceremonies,  the  pro- 
duct of  the  French  mind,  which,  as  they  could  never  be  adapted  te 
a  cosmopolitan  system,  are  as  impracticable  as  they  are  trifling. 


THE   GREAT   NAME   OF   GOD.  221 

With  the  Oriental  dislike  to  change,  these  craftsmen  will  be  strong- 
advocates  of  uniformity,  and  stern  opponents  of  innovation,  saying 
with  Southey: 

"  It  don't  look  well, 

These  alterations,  sir !    I'm  an  old  man, 
And  love  the  good  old  fashions; 
I  like  what  I've  been  used  to." 

The  eunuch,  that  dry-tree  of  Freemasonry,  as  Isaiah  terms  him 
(Ivi.  3),  artificially  made,  is  common  here,  readily  distinguished  by 
the  imbecility  of  his  countenance  and  moroseness  of  manner.  He  is 
the  conventional  non-Mason  of  this  as  well  as  all  jurisdictions. 

The  only  innovation  possible  to  Oriental  Masons  is  that  of  omission 
They  may  (and  do)  drop  out,  lop  off,  more  or  less  of  the  work,  and 
so  fail  to  exhibit  the  great  principles  in  as  heavy  relief  (basso-relievo) 
as  we  do  in  America.  This  is  too  clear  to  an  observer  in  one  of 
their  lodges  to  bear  contradiction.  But  they  never  "  put  new  cloth 
upon  the  old  garment,"  tattered  as  it  may  be. 

The  holy  nature  of  our  obligations  to  the  wife,  daughter,  widow, 
sister,  and  mother,  of  the  Master  Mason,  growing  out  of  that  res- 
pect for  the  sex  which  colors  all  our  communications  with  each 
other,  is  carried  here  to  excess.  Even  to  ask  a  Moslem  if  he  has  a 
wife  or  daughter,  or  to  inquire  after  her  health,  or  to  make  any 
allusion  to  her  existence,  is  a  violation  of  social  etiquette ;  there- 
fore a  violation  of  one  of  the  landmarks  of  Oriental  society! 

In  relation  to  the  NAME  of  DEITY  as  a  Masonic  emblem,  strangely 
disputed  by  some  American  reformers,  I  found  no  variety  of  opinion 
in  the  East;  and  the  following  English  translation  of  a  Russian 
poem  by  Derzhaven  embodies  their  views  as  well  as  ours : 

Oh  thou  eternal  ONE,  whose  presence  bright 

All  space  doth  occupy,  all  motion  guide ; 
Unchanged  through  time's  all -devastating  flight, 

Thou  only  GOD, — there  is  no  GOD  beside ! 
Being  above  all  beings,  Mighty  ONE, 

Whom  none  can  comprehend  and  none  explore, 
Who  fill'st  existence  with  Thyself  alone, 

Embracing  all,  supporting,  ruling  o'er ; 

Being  whom  we  call  GOD,  and  know  no  more  I 

And  yet  if  there  is  any  one  precept  in  Masonry  more  persistently 
violated  by  these  people  than  another,  it  is  that  Masonic  injunction 
•'*  Never  to  mention  the  name  of  God,  but  with  that  reverential  awe 


222  THE   OPEN   WORD   ON"  THE    ALTAR. 

which  is  due  from  a  creature  to  his  Creator."  The  Mosaic  prohibi- 
tion against  profanity  was  as  positive  as  human  language  could  make 
it,  and  equally  forms  a  part  of  the  Mohammedan's  Koran  as  of  the 
Book  of  Exodus;  yet  the  name  of  God  is  persistently,  irreverently, 
and  even  ridiculously  used  here,  by  old  and  young.  It  is  always  ring- 
ing in  your  ears  while  travelling  among  Mohammedans.  The 
/  expression  to  your  horse  or  ass,  "Get  up;  go  ahead,"  is  Yelldh  (Ya 
Allah),  oh  God!  and  in  a  hundred,  yea,  a  thousand  other  forms  the 
Divine  Name  is  made  contemptible  among  them.  The  Jews,  I 
suppose,  had  got  to  the  same  point  in  the  days  of  Jesus ;  for  Peter, 
in  his  shameful  fall  and  denial,  "made  imprecations  and  swore," 
taking  heavy  blasphemies  on  his  tongue  when  he  cut  loose  his 
friendship  for  the  MAN  who  had  fallen  into  evil  hands.  The 
Crusaders  swore  like  Trim's  "army  in  Flanders,"  and  the  Oriental 
Catholics  and  Greek  Christians  are  as  bad  as  the  Mohammedans. 
"  For  swearing  the  land  mourneth,"  may  well  be  said  of  the  Orient. 
This  is  a  subject  to  which  the  Masonic  moralist  here  should  turn 
his  first  attention. 

It  is  peculiarly  gratifying  to  know  that,  in  spite  of  Gallic  influences, 
the  Open  Word  is  yet  spread  out  on  the  altar  in  Palestine  Lodge, 
No.  415,  to  gladden  the  first  sight  of  the  Masonic  Candidate  "  brought 
to  light; "  and  the  Emblem  of  Deity,  author  of  the  Bible,  still  greets 
his  first  upward  glance  to  the  Orient.  Long  may  these  ancient 
landmarks  of  the  craft  be  maintained !  Every  Freemason,  whether 
Christian,  Jewish,  or  Mohammedan,  is  willing  to  abide  by  the  pre- 
cepts, admire  the  beauty,  revere  the  mysteries,  and  practise  the 
principles,  so  far  as  he  has  the  power,  of  this  sacred  volume ;  and  these 
genial  craftsmen,  with  all  their  lack  of  skill  in  rituals,  have  not 
transgressed  the  fundamental  laws  of  Masonry,  or  changed  ita 
ordinances,  or  broken  its  everlasting  covenants  (Isaiah  xxiv.  5). 
S  Occidental  reformers  may  encourage  their  Oriental  brethren  with  the 
hope  that  though  "  the  bricks  are  fallen  down,  we  will  build  with 
hewn  stones ;  though  the  sycamores  are  cut  down,  we  will  change 
them  into  cedars  "  (Isaiah  ix.  10). 

But  as  it  used  to  be  said  so  often,  by  our  Masonic  authors,  that  the 
Koran  has  been,  or  will  be,  or  may  be,  substituted  for  the  Hebrew 
Scriptures,  in  lodge-use,  this  is  a  good  time  to  consider  the  subject. 
An  entire  chapter,  had  I  the  space,  would  not  be  too  much  to  dissect 
that  singular  work,  which  some  Masonic  writers  have  suggested  as  a 
fitting  substitute  on  Masonic  altars,  in  Mohammedan  countries,  foi 


THE    KORAN. 

the  Hebrew  Scriptures,  and  illustrate  the  numeious  topics  introduced 
into  this  volume.  That  it  is  the  Bible  of  Mohammedan  Masons  may 
be  admitted  in  one  sense,  and  Preston  seems,  in  his  Illustrations,  to 
*ake  it  for  granted  that  as  Freemasons  we  may  so  recognize  it. 

Is  the  Koran  a  book  to  support  the  hands  of  a  Freemason  ?  The 
perusal  of  it  will  show  — 

1.  That  all  the  doctrines  (as  distinguished  from  the  legends)  are 
sound  and  good. 

%.  That  nearly  every  maxim,  religious  precept,  and  doctrine, 
strictly  so  called,  is  quoted  from  the  Hebrew  Scriptures,  and  notably 
from  the  Ten  Commandments,  and  is  then  sound  and  good. 

3.  That  the  larger  portion  of  its  legends  (traditions,  historical 
passages)  are  borrowed  from  the  same  source,  and  are  therefore 
reliable. 

It  follows,  then,  that  the  so-styled  "True  Believers"  are  qualified^, 
as  to  religious  belief,  'to  receive  the  mysteries  of  Masonry. 

About  twenty  years  since  I  made  a  critical  commentary  on  Sale's 
Koran,  with  special  reference  to  the  question,  "  May  this  book  (or 
the  original)  be  used  on  the  Masonic  altar  as  a  substitute  for  the 
Hebrew  Scriptures  ?  "  From  that  essay  the  following  is  extracted  : 

1.  The  Bible  is  to  be  judged  by  its  general  scope  and  intention, — 
not  by  a  few  isolated  passages,  and  these,  possibly,  misconceived  in 
the  process  of  translation  from  a  language  highly  idiomatic  and 
poetical    to  one  extremely  practical.     Many  of  its  traditions  and 
teachings  were  delivered  orally,  and  awaited  for  years  the  pen  of  the 
historian.    How  easy,  then,  to  mistake  their  meaning !    As  believers 
in  its  authenticity,  we  are  unwilling  that  it  shall  be  treated  harshly. 
Let  us  only  have  like  charity  for  the  Koran,  and  it  will  not  stand 
so  much  condemned.    The  history  of  the  one,  in  these  respects,  is 
very  similar  to  that  of  the  other.    It  inculcates  the'  mode  of  life 
exemplified  by  its  giver ;  and  of  him  Spanhemius  says :  "  He  was 
richly  furnished  with  natural  endowments ;  beautiful  in  his  person  ; 
of  a  subtle  wit ;  agreeable  behavior — showing  liberality  to  the  poor 
— courtesy  to  every  one — fortitude  against  his  enemies — and,  above 
all,  a  high  reverence  for  the  name  of  God  ;  severe  against  the  perjured, 
adulterers,  murderers,  slanderers,  prodigals,  covetous,  false  witnesses, 
etc, ;  a  great  preacher  of  patience,  chanty,  mercy,  beneficence,  grati- 
tude— honoring  of  parents  and  superiors  ;  and  a  frequent  celebrator 
of  the  divine  praises." 

2.  That  it  is  principally  derived  from  the  Holy  Scriptures,  can 
Duly  be  proved  by  a  more  extended  comparison  than  can  be  madt 
here,  and,  after  a  thoughtful  examination  of  the  quotations  that  fol- 
low, the  student  is  referred  to  the  body  of  the  work. 


224  SYNOPSIS  OF  THE  KORAN". 

3.  That  its  traditions  are  mainly  true,  follows  as  a  corollary  upoE 
the  establishment  of  the  second  proposition ;  therefore,  reference  is 
only  made  here  to  the  Scriptures  of  the  Old  and  New  Testaments. 
and  to  Masonic  tradition. 

4.  Faith  in  God,  a  belief  in  a  revealed  "Word,  are  the  first  requi 
sites  of  a  candidate  for  Masonic  honors  and  privileges.    Unless  he 
possess  the  former,  no  pledge,  obligation,  or  covenant,  can  be  con- 
sidered binding  upon  him.     Without  the  latter,  he  can  know  noth- 
ing, spiritually,  of  the  former.    With  both,  he  possesses  that  venera- 
tion for  truth  which  the  Institution  requires,  and  that  horror  of 
falsehood  so  eloquently  illustrated  in  Masonic  rites.     The  proof  that 
the  Koran  is  such  a  Kevelation  to  those  who  believe  it,  is  found  in 
its  pages,  from  which  the  following  extracts  are  taken. 

5.  The  fitness  of  the  Koran  for  Masonic  uses,  may  be  considered 
from  the  first  of  these  propositions.     It  is  the  Bible  of  the  Moslems, 
and  they  are  many  millions ;  nations  are  governed  by  its  precepts, 
religious  and  civil ;  they  neither  have,  nor  desire  to  have,  any  other 
law  ;  it  is  as  fully  the  standard  of  Mohammedan  brethren  as  are  the 
Holy  Writings  to  the  Hebrew  and  the  Christian. 

"  Thee  do  we  worship,  and  of  Thee  do  we  beg  assistance.  Direct 
us  in  the  right  way,  in  the  way  of  those  to  whom  Thou  hast  been 
gracious — not  of  those  against  whom  Thou  hast  been  incensed,  nor 
of  those  who  go  astray. 

"  God  is  almighty ;  God  is  omnipresent  and  omniscient ;  God  is 
easy  to  be  reconciled  and  merciful ;  God  is  gracious  and  merciful 
unto  men ;  God  is  mighty  and  wise. 

'•  GOD,  there  is  no  God  but  He,  the  living,  the  self-subsisting ; 
neither  sleep  nor  slumber  seizeth  Him ;  to  Him  belongeth  whatso- 
ever is  in  heaven  or  on  earth.  He  knoweth  that  which  is  past  and 
that  which  is  to  come. 

"  Who  forgiveth  sins  except  God  ?  God  loveth  the  beneficent 
Truth  is  from  the  Lord.  As  for  him  who  voluntarily  performeth  a 
good  work,  verily  God  is  grateful  and  giving.  God  is  bountiful 
unto  whom  He  pleaseth,  without  measure.  Thev  who  believe,  and 
who  fly  for  the  sake  of  religion,  and  fight  in  God's  cause,  they  shall 
hope  for  the  mercy  of  God ;  for  God  is  gracious  and  merciful.  "  Unto 
God  belongeth  the  kingdom  of  heaven  and  of  earth ;  He  giveth  life, 
and  He  causeth  to  die  ;  and  ye  have  no  patron  or  helper  beside  God. 
God  is  easy  to  be  reconciled  and  merciful.  0,  true  believers,  fear 
God  and  be  sincere.  If  ye  attempt  to  reckon  up  the  favors  of  God, 
ye  shall  not  be  able  to  complete  their  number.  God  is  surely  gra- 
cious and  merciful.  If  it  be  asked  of  those  who  fear  God,  What  hath 
vonr  Lord  sent  down  ?  they  shall  answer,  Good  !— unto  those  who 
do  right  shall  be  given  an  excellent  reward  in  this  world.  But  the 
iildren  of  the  next  life  shall  be  better;  and  happy  shall  be  the 
dwelling  of  the  pious,  namely,  gardens  of  eternal  abode,  into  which 
they  shall  enter ;  rivers  shall  flow  beneath  the  same ;  therein  shall 


SYNOPSIS   OF   THE   KORAN".  225 

they  enjoy  whatsoever  they  wish.    Thus  will  God  recompense  the 
pious. 

"  Praise  be  unto  God,  the  Creator  of  heaven  and  earth.  The 
mercy  which  God  shall  freely  bestow  on  mankind,  there  is  none  who 
can  withhold ;  and  what  He  shall  withhold  there  is  none  who  can 
bestow.  0  men,  remember  the  favor  of  God  towards  you  ! — is  there 
any  Creator  besides  God,  who  provideth  food  for  you  from  heaven 
and  earth  ?  The  promise  of  God  is  true.  Let  not,  therefore,  the 
present  life  deceive  you.  Whosoever  deviseth  excellence,  unto  God 
doth  all  excellence  belong ;  unto  Him  ascendeth  the  good  speech ; 
and  the  righteous  work  He  will  exhort.  Oh  men,  ye  have  need  of 
God,  but  God  is  self-sufficient.  Whosoever  cleanseth  himself  from 
the  guilt  of  disobedience,  cleanseth  himself  to  the  advantage  of  his 
own  soul,  for  all  shall  be  assembled  before  God  at  the  last  day. 

"The  pious  distribute  alms  out  of  what  God  has  bestowed  on 
them. 

"Ask  help  with  perseverance  and  prayer. 

"  Surely  those  who  believe,  and  those  who  Jndaize,  and  Christians, 
and  Sabines,  whoever  believeth  in  God  and  the  last  day,  and  doth  thai 
which  is  right,  they  shall  have  their  reward  with  the  Lord;  there 
shall  no  fear  come  on  them,  neither  shall  they  be  grieved. 

"  Ye  shall  show  kindness  to  your  parents  and  kindred,  and  to  or- 
phans, and  to  the  poor,  and  speak  that  which  is  good  unto  men,  and 
be  constant  at  prayer,  and  give  alms. 

"  They  who  purchase  this  life  at  the  price  of  that  which  is  to 
come,  their  punishment  shall  be  complete,  and  they  shall  be  without 
help. 

"Be  constant  in  prayer,  and  give  alms;  and  what  treasures  ye 
have  laid  up  in  heaven,  ye  shall  find  them  with  God.  He  who  re- 
signeth  himself  to  God,  and  doth  that  which  is  right,  he  shall  have 
his  reward  with  his  Lord. 

"  Beg  assistance,  with  patience  and  prayer,  for  God  is  with  the 
patient. 

"  Eighteousness  is  of  him  who  believeth  in  God  and  the  last  day, 
and  the  angels,  and  the  Scriptures,  and  the  prophets;  who  giveth 
money,  for  God's  sake,  unto  his  kindred  and  unto  orphans,  and  the 
needy,  and  the  stranger,  and  those  who  ask,  and  for  redemption  of 
captives ;  who  is  constant  at  prayer,  and  giveth  alms ;  and  of  those 
who.  perform  their  covenant,  when  they  have  covenanted,  and  who 
behave  themselves  patiently  in  adversity  and  hardship,  and  in  time 
of  violence, — these  are  they  who  are  true,  and  these  are  they  who 
fear  God. 

"  He  who  voluntarily  dealeth  better  with  the  poor  man  than  he  is 
obliged,  this  shall  be  better  for  him. 

"Make  not  God  lightly  the  object  of  your  oaths,  and  deal  justly, 
and  be  devout,  and  make  peace  among  men. 

"God  will  not  punish  you  for  an  inconsiderate  word  in  your  oaths, 
out  for  that  which  your  hearts  have  assented  to. 

15 


226  SYNOPSIS  OF  THE   KORAN". 

"  Let  there  be  no  violence  in  religion. 

'•Whatever  alms  ye  shall  give,  or  whatever  vow  ye  shall  vow 
verily  God  knoweth  it. 

"  If  there  be  any  debtor  under  a  difficulty  of  paying  his  debt,  let 
his  creditor  wait  till  it  be  easy  for  him  to  do  it. 

"  Whoso  keepeth  his  covenant,  and  feareth  God,  God  will  surely 
love.  .  .  But  they  who  make  merchandise  of  God's  covenant  and 
their  oaths,  shall  suffer  a  grievous  punishment. 

"  He  who  cleaveth  firmly  unto  God,  is  already  directed  in  the  right 
way. 

"  Fear  God  that  ye  may  prosper. 

"  What  is  with  God  shall  be  better  for  the  righteous  than  short- 
lived worldly  prosperity. 

"Observe 'justice  when  ye  appear  as  witnesses  before  God,  and  let 
not  hatred  towards  any  induce  you  to  do  wrong. 

"  Since  ye  were  dead,  and  God  gave  you  life,  he  will  hereafter 
cause  you  'to  die,  and  will  again  restore  you  to  life ;  then  shall  ye 
return  unto  him. 

"God  said,  0  Adam,  dwell  thou  and  thy  wife  in  the  garden,  and 
eat  of  the  fruit  plentifully  wherever  ye  will ;  but  approach  not  this 
tree,  lest  ye  become  of  the  number  of  transgressors.  .  .  .  But 
Satan  caused  them  to  forfeit  Paradise,  and  turned  them  out  of  the 
state  of  happiness  wherein  they  had  been. 

"  Remember,  when  God  delivered  you  from  the  people  of  Pharaoh, 
who  grievously  oppressed  you,  and  slew  your  male  children ;  and 
when  He  divided  the  sea  for  you  and  delivered  you. 

"  God  raiseth  the  dead  to  life. 

"  Solomon  was  a  believer. 

"  God  shall  judge  between  us,  at  the  day  of  resurrection,  concern- 
ing that  about  which  we  now  disagree. 

•'  The  dead  have  what  they  have  gained,  and  ye  shall  have  what 
ye  gain  ;  and  ye  shall  not  be  questioned  concerning  what  others  have 
done. 

u  Wherever  ye  be,  God  will  bring  you  all  back  at  the  resurrection. 
God  shall  lead  the  believer  out  of  darkness  into  light, 

"  God  created  you  out  of  one  man,  and  out  of  him  created  his  wife, 
and  from  them  two  hath  multiplied  many. 

"  God  formerly  accepted  the  covenant  of  the  children  of  Israel, 
and  appointed  out  of  them  twelve  leaders. 

"God  sent  down  the  Law  and  the  Gospel,  a  direction  unto  men; 
and  also  the  distinction  between  good  and  evil. 

"  Do  you  believe  in  part  of  the  Book  of  the  Law,  and  reject  other 
parts  thereof?  Whoso  among  you  doth  this,  shall  have  no  other  re- 
ward than  shame  in  this  life,  and  on  the  day  of  resurrection  shall  be 
•ent  to  a  most  grievous  punishment 

"He  delivered  the  Book  of  the  Law  unto  Moses,  and  gave  evident 
miracles  to  Jesus,  the  Son  of  Mary,  and  strengthened  Him  with  the 
Holy  Spirit  The  Scriptures  descend  upon  the  heart,  by  the  per- 


SYNOPSIS  OF  THE   KORAN.  22t 

mission  of  God,  confirming  that  which  was  before  revealed,  a  direc- 
tion and  good  tidings  to  the  faithful.  Oh  God,  punish  us  not  if  we 
forget  or  act  sinfully.  Oh  God,  lay  not  on  us  a  burden  like  that 
which  Thou  hast  laid  on  those  who  have  been  before  us;  neither 
make  us,  oh  Lord,  to  bear  what  we  have  not  strength  to  bear,  but  be 
favorable  unto  us,  and  spare  us.  and  be  merciful  unto  us.  Paradise 
is  prepared  for  the  godly,  who  give  alms  in  prosperity  and  adversity, 
who  bridle  their  anger,  and  forgive  men.  They  who  have  committed 
a  crime,  or  dealt  unjustly  with  their  own  souls,  who  shall  remember 
God,  and  ask  pardon  for  their  sins,  and  persevere  not  in  what  they 
have  done,  their  reward  shall  be  pardon  from  the  Lord. 

"  Whosoever  believeth  not  the  Scriptures  shall  perish.  They  who 
conceal  any  part  of  the  Scriptures,  God  shall  not  speak  to  them  on 
the  day  of  resurrection,  and  they  shall  suffer  a  grievous  punish- 
ment." 

The  Scriptural  doctrine  of  a  future  state  of  rewards  and  punish- 
ments is  everywhere  taught  in  the  Koran :  "  Whosoever  doeth  ma- 
liciously and  wickedly,  God  will  cast  him  to  be  broiled  in  hell-fire," 
is  startling  enough  for  the  firmest  believer  in  eternal  punishment. 
"Their  couch  shall  be  in  hell,  and  over  them  shall  be  coverings  of 
fire;  they  shall  be  companions  of  hell-fire;  they  shall  taste  the  pun- 
ishment for  that  which  they  have  gained.  On  a  certain  day  God 
will  call  all  men  to  judgment,  with  their  respective  leaders ;  who- 
ever hath  been  blind  in  this  life  shall  also  be  blind  in  the  next ;  the 
righteous  shall  be  rewarded  with  the  highest  appointments  in  Para- 
dise, because  they  have  persevered  with  constancy,  and  they  shall 
meet  therein  with  greeting  and  salutation ;  they  shall  remain  in  the 
same  forever ;  it  shall  be  an  excellent  abode  and  a  delightful  station. 
Those  who  shall  believe,  and  shall  work  righteousness,  God  will 
surely  introduce  into  Paradise  among  the  upright." 

Injunctions  to  believe  and  obey  the  Scriptures  abound  everywhere 
in  the  Koran.  For  instance :  "  If  they  who  have  received  the  Scrip- 
tures believe  and  fear  God,  He  will  surely  expiate  their  sins  from 
them,  and  He  will  lead  them  into  gardens  of  pleasure ;  and  if  they 
observe  the  Law  and  the  Gospel,  and  the  other  Scriptures  which 
have  been  sent  down  unto  them  from  their  Lord,  they  shall  surely 
eat  of  good  things,  both  from  above  them  and  from  under  their  feet. 
0,  ye  who  have  received  the  Scriptures,  ye  are  not  grounded  on  any- 
thing until  ye  observe  the  Law  and  the  Gospel,  and  that  which  hath 
been  sent  down  unto  you  from  your  Lord." 

But  of  all  the  matters  of  Masonic  interest  in  this  parallelism  be- 
tween the  Koran  and  the  Bible,  perhaps  none  is  so  striking  as  the 
introduction  into  the  former,  though  often  in  a  distorted  state,  of  the 
historical  facts  and  narratives  that  make  up  so  large  a  portion  of  the 
latter.  Nearly  every  incident  is  transferred,  with  more  or  less  ac- 
curacy, and  those  of  chief  importance  are  repeated  several  times 


228  SYNOPSIS  OF  THE  KORAN. 

Concerning  Adam,  for  instance,  we  have  many  facts — some,  it  must 
be  confessed,  fanciful  enough— yet  generally  agreeable  to  the  Bible. 
They  refer  to  his  creation,  his  being  worshipped  by  the  angels,  his 
grievous  fall,  his  penitence  with  prayer,  his  meeting  with  Eve,  re- 
tirement with  her,  their  stature,  etc.,  etc. 

Concerning  Abraham,  the  Koran  is  even  more  diffuse.  We  have 
the  facts  of  his  idolatrous  youth,  his  conversion,  his  destruction  of 
the  idols  of  his  father's  family,  his  preaching  to  the  people,  disputa- 
tions with  Nimrod,  escape  from  destruction,  prayer  for  his  father, 
plea  to  God  for  evidence  of  the  resurrection,  sacrifice,  entertainment 
of  the  angels,  God's  promise  of  Isaac,  he  is  called  the  friend  of  God,, 
is  fed  with  a  miracle,  his  offering  up  of  Isaac,  etc.,  etc. 

The  Old  Testament  relations  concerning  Moses,  Aaron,  Mount 
Ararat,  the  Deluge,  Pharaoh,  the  tower  of  Babel,  Balaam,  the  Queen 
of  Sheba,  Solomon,  Jacob,  and  several  of  his  sons,  Cain,  and  Abel, 
Joshua,  Caleb,  the  Golden  Calf,  David  and  Goliath,  Elijah,  Elisha, 
Enoch,  Ezekiel,  Ezra,  the  Angel  Gabriel,  Jonah,  Ishmael,  Lot,  Nim- 
rod, Sennacherib,  etc.,  etc.,  are  detailed  with  minuteness.  I  give 
specimens : 

"  Solomon  was  David's  heir,  and  he  said,  Oh  men,  we  have  been 
taught  the  speech  of  birds,  and  have  had  all  things  bestowed  on  us ; 
this  is  manifest  excellence;"  and  of  Moses — "Now  Pharaoh  lifted 
himself  up  in  the  land  of  Egypt :  and  he  caused  his  subjects  to  be 
divided  into  parties;  he  weakened  one  party  of  them  by  slaying 
their  male  children  and  preserving  their  females  alive;  for  he  was 
an  oppressor.  And  God  was  minded  to  be  gracious  unto  those  who 
were  weakened  in  the  land,  and  to  make  them  models  of  religion, — 
and  to  make  them  the  heirs  of  the  wealth  of  Pharaoh  and  his  peo- 
ple, and  to  establish  a  place  for  them  in  the  earth ;  and  to  show 
Pharaoh  and  Haman,  and  their  forces,  that  destruction  of  their 
kingdom  and  nation  by  them,  which  they  sought  to  avoid.  And 
God  directed  the  mother  of  Moses,  by  revelation,  saying,  Give  him 
suck ;  and,  if  thou  fearest  for  him,  cast  him  into  the*  river,  and  fear 
not,  neither  be  afflicted;  for  we  will  restore  him  unto  thee,  and 
appoint  him  one  of  our  apostles.  And  when  she  had  put  the  child 
in  the  ark,"  etc.  See  chapter  xxviii.  of  the  Koran  for  a  minute  his- 
tory of  these  transactions. 

"  Your  God  is  our  God ;  there  is  no  God  but  He,  the  most  merci- 
ful. All  power  belongeth  unto  God,  and  He  is  severe  in  punishing. 
God  contracteth  and  extendeth  his  hand  as  he  pleaseth.  God  is  our 
support,  and  the  most  excellent  patron.  God  knoweth  the  inner- 
most part  of  the  breasts  of  men.  Oh  men,  serve  your  God  who 
hath  created  you.  Ye  shall  not  worship  any  other  except  God. 
Dost  thou  not  know  that  God  is  almighty  ?  that  unto  Him  belongeth 
the  kingdom  of  heaven  and  earth  ?  that  ye  have  no  helper  or  pro- 
tector except  God  ?  To  God  belongeth  the  east  and  the  west ;  there- 
fT  ^?.lthersoever  way  ye  turn  yourselves  to  pray,  there  is  the  face 


TITLES    OF   KORANIC   CHAPTERS.  229 

So  many  Mohammedans  are  Masons,  and  the  seed  of  Masonry  has 
proved  so  congenial  to  the  soil  of  Mohammedan  lands,  that  I  trust 
the  space  I  have  given  this  subject  will  be  considered  fitly  occupied. 

As  a  specimen  of  the  style  in  which  this  singular  work  is  composed, 
let  us  take  the  third  chapter,  entitled  Abu  Laheb.  Mohammed  had 
become  incensed  against  his  uncle,  Abu  Laheb,  for  refusing  to  accept 
his  prophetic  missou,  and  launched  the  following  missile  against 
him  :  "  In  the  name  of  the  Most  Merciful  God,*  the  hands  of  Abu 
Luheb  shall  perish,  and  he  himself  shall  perish.  Neither  his  riches 
nor  his  gains  shall  be  of  service  to  him.  He  shall  go  down  into  the 
flaming  fire  of  hell,  and  there  be  burned.  His  wife  also  shall  go 
there,  carrying  fuel  to  feed  the  infernal  flames.  And  she  shall  have 
on  her  neck  a  rope  twisted  of  the  fibres  of  the  palm-tree."  The 
name  of  Mohammed's  aunt,  to  whom  he  threatened  such  diabolical 
penalties,  was  Omm  (mother)  Jemeel. 

The  titles  of  some  of  the  chapters  of  the  Koran  afford  a  hint  of 
their  contents,  and  show  how  florid  is  Oriental  imagery :  The  Helping 
Hand  (107),  The  Gloomy  Veil  (88),  The  Swift  War-Horses  (100), 
The  Breath  of  the  Winds  (51),  The  Frowning  Brow  (80),  The  Un- 
just Measure  (83),  etc. 

In  the  presence  of  the  priests,  the  chiefs  of  Arab  tribes  meet  to- 
gether on  the  eve  of  a  military  expedition,  and  putting  their  hands 
upon  their  sacred  book  (the  Koran),  they  say :  "  We  swear  by  God 
(Allah)  that  we  are  brothers ;  and  will  fight  with  one  and  the  same 
weapon ;  and  if  we  perish,  it  shall  be  with  the  same  sword." 

*  All  the  1 14  chapters  of  the  Koran,  except  one,  commence  with  th :  passage,  "  In 
16  name  of  the  Most  Merciful  tiu  ." 


EGYPTIAN   WILLOW   BASKETS. 


CHAPTER  XV. 


THE  AMERICAN   MISSIONARIES. 

VERY  American  Mason  must  feel  a  national  as  well  as 
religious  interest  in  whatever  proposes  to  elevate  the  Orien- 
tal races,  and  paves  the  way  for  the  lifting  up  of  this  long 
down-trodden  land.  Nothing  has  conduced  so  much  to 
this  as  the  labors  of  the  Protestant  missions  of  the  A.  B. 
C.  F.  M.,  operating  in  this  country  for  about  half  a  century.  Going 
out  through  the  narrow,  gloomy,  noisy,  noisome  streets;  throtigh 
winding  ways  of  the  magnificent  amphitheatre  of  gardens  ;  through 
the  pines  which  cast  their  thin  shadows  over  the  surrounding  flats 
of  sand ;  through  the  vast  grove  of  olives  which  silver  the  shallow 
valley  at  the  base  of  Lebanon  ;  then,  looking  back  over  this  thriving 
city,  with  a  present  population  of  75,000  souls,  and  the  promise  of 
thrice  the  number,  we  may  proudly  point  to  the  Syrian  University, 
built  by  American  money,  and  conducted  by  American  learning  and 
intelligence,  as  the  only  institution  of  the  class  in  the  East.  And 
this  is  but  one  of  the  many  fruits  of  missionary  labors  here.  As  I 
read  the  corner-stone  speech  of  Mr.  Wm.  E.  Dodge,  delivered  here 
December,  1871,  I  could  not  help  inquiring  with  the  poet:  An  erit 
gui  vellit  recuset  ospopuli  meruisse,  et  cedro  digna  locutus  linquere  f — 
Is  there  any  one  who  does  not  wish  to  deserve  popular  applause,  and  to 
leave  words  worthy  to  be  preserved  in  cedar?  For  I  felt  that  I  would 
rather  have  filled  his  place  that  day,  as  the  chief  benefactor  of  the 
Syrian  University,  than  that  of  any  other  living  man ! 

I  associated  with  \he  different  families  of  the  missionaries  a  goo 
deal,  and  my  personal  views  of  them  as  a  class  are  admirably  ex- 
pressed by  another  writer,  who  says :  "  They  are  pious,  sober,  benev 
lent ;  devout  in  the  offices  of  religion ;  in  conversation,  innocent  an 
cheerful ;  exhibiting  in  all  their  actions  those  best  and  truest    ^ 
of  Christian  spirit,  a  sincere  and  cheerful  friendship  among  the 


PBOTESTAOT  MISSIONARIES.  231 

selves,  and  a  generous  charity  to  all."  This  witness  is  true.  Of  Dr. 
Van  Dyke,  whose  professional  labors,  especially  in  the  Department 
of  Ophthalmy,  have  been  something  unprecedented  in  extent,  I  have 
written ;  he  has  much  grace  and  ease,  with  a  sub-flavor  of  gentle  and 
sportive  humor,  hinting  at  possibilities.  Whenever  I  returned  to  Bey- 
rout,  loaded  down  with  specimens  and  note-books,  his  salutation, 
u  Well,  Doctor,  have  you  discovered  Jachin  and  Boaz  yet  ?  "  was  the 
first  that  greeted  my  ear.  Of  Dr.  Bliss,  I  noted  he  has  an  air  of 
engaging  frankness.  His  language  is  always  simple  and  unaffected. 
lie  is  a  hard  student,  and  an  industrious  man. 

It  is  the  part  of  these  men  to  contend  with  the  bigotry,  intoler- 
ance, unreasonableness,  and  wordly-mindedness  of  the  Latin  and 
Greek  priests,  who  oppose  schools,  books,  printing,  and  everything 
not  under  their  own  control.  Among  them  I  enjoyed  the  excellence 
and  amiableness  of  the  Lord's  house.  Another  has  given  my  idea  in 
almost  the  same  words :  "  What  they  chiefly  have  to  contend  with 
is  not  so  much  the  heathenism  that  surrounds  them,  as  the  pompous 
and  imposing  ceremonies  in  which  the  remains  of  Orien-tal  Christian- 
ity are  enveloped.  At  the  same  shrines  of  idolatrous  superstition, 
in  Jerusalem,  bow  the  subtle  and  exclusive  Jesuit,  the  pompous 
Greek,  the  austere  and  zealous  Armenian,  the  poor  Copt,  and  the 
timid  Abyssinian ;  their  worship  in  all  essential  features  similar ;  heat 
without  light,  sound  without  sense,  form  without  power,  the  body 
without  the  soul" 

Since  Father  Jonas  King  (who  deceased  1870)  brought  his  own 
bread  and  wine  here  from  Paris,  to  celebrate  the  sacrament,  more 
than  half  a  century  since,  nearly  two  generations  have  participated 
in  the  mystic  repast  with  these  missionaries,  at  Beyrout. 

They  recognize  no  denominational  names,  such  as  Presbyterians, 
Congregation  alists,  and  the  like,  but  call  themselves  missionaries, 
as  the  disciples  just  above  here,  at  Antioch,  first  called  themselves 
Christians. 

They  are  of  opinion,  and  so  are  many  of  us,  that  one  great  result 
of  the  awakening  in  missionary  effort,  here  and  elsewhere,  has  been 
to  kindle  the  religious  fire  in  the  churches,  and  increase  the  harmony 
of  the  Christian  body  at  home.  At  first  Smyrna  and  Malta  were 
made  their  centres  of  labor,  and  certain  persons  in  Boston,  Massa- 
chusetts, agreed  to  give  $3,000  per  annum  for  five  years  to  establish 
a  Christian  press  at  Malta.  Then  it  was  moved  to  Smyrna,  and 
anally  here. 


232  THE   EYE-IXFIRMAKY. 

They  are  making  gradual  but  sure  progress  towards  raising,  from 
a  degraded  and  vicious  level,  these  people  of  the  East,  just  as  the 
nations  of  Europe  were  raised  from  a  similar  plane  by  missionariea 
from  the  East  They  find,  with  Cicero,  Dei  plena  sunt  omnia — all 
things  are  full  of  Deity,  and  they  lean  heavily  and  faithfully  on  the 
Divine  arm. 

They  have  their  romances,  their  episodes  of  terrible  interest,  their 
history  of  times  when  a  man's  heel  could  have  stamped  out  the  little 
spark  they  had  kindled.  The  story  of  Assad-esh-Shidiak,  as  told  in 
the  Missionary  Herald  of  Feb.,  1833,  is  one  of  these.  But  fidelity 
and  heroic  resistance  have  thus  far  overcome  all  obstacles. 

Some  tourists  have  foolishly  exaggerated  the  comforts  they  enjoy, 
and  depreciated  the  effect  of  their  labors  upon  the  uninstructed 
masses  around  them.  Both  these  errors,  it  is  charity  to  believe, 
spring  from  thoughtlessness  alone.  The  sight  of  educated,  delicate 
ladies,  like  those  whom  I  saw  gracing  the  Protestant  missions  at 
Beyrout  and  Sidon,  who  have  buried  themselves  beyond  the  reach  of 
congenial  society,  or  that  of  earnest  Christian  gentlemen,  thoroughly 
instructed  to  adorn  any  profession  in  life,  but  giving  their  whole 
lives  to  a  most  arduous,  thankless  charge;  these  things  suggest 
nothing  to  my  mind  but  self-sacrifice.  Their  manner  of  living  is 
simple  and  economical,  the  only  deviation  being  the  necessary  care 
of  strangers  who  claim  their  hospitality,  sometimes  in  inconvenient 
numbers,  and  add  greatly  to  their  domestic  expenses. 

The  principal  work  of  the  mission  has  been,  until  quite  recently, 
printing  books,  establishing  schools  for  teaching  Christianity  to  the 
young,  and  healing  institutions  for  the  sick.  The  number  of  their 
printed  publications  is  large,  including,  in  addition  to  hymn-books 
and  theological  works,  a  complete  copy  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  in 
Arabic.  For  this,  the  first  matrices  were  cut  by  the  elder  Mr. 
Hallock,  and  the  electrotype  plates  made  by  his  son,  Mr.  Samuel 
Hallock,  of  whose  name  I  am  making  such  frequent  use  in  the 
present  volume.  He  told  me  that  the  lead  of  which  the  first  type- 
metal  here  was  made  was  sheet-lead  torn  from  the  old  Roman  coffins, 
and  sold  to  them  by  the  natives !  Several  steam-presses  aro  now 
kept  busy  by  this  printing-house  at  Beyrout 

In  the  way  of  establishing  schools,  their  labors  have  been  abun- 
dant Their  hospital  and  infirmary  at  Beyrout  have  a  reputation  that 
extends  even  to  Bagdad  and  Egypt  For  diseases  of  the  eye,  which 
Dr.  Van  Dyke  makes  a  specialty,  there  is  perhaps  no  institution  in 


TRANSLATIONS   OF   BOOKS.  233 

the  world  that  excels  his  in  the  number  of  cases  treated,  or  the 
success  of  operations  and  treatment.  I  used  to  see  a  regular  string 
of  applicants  waiting  their  turn  at  his  door,  and  was  informed  that 
during  the  spring  I  was  there  (1868)  Dr.  Van  Dyke  treated  largely 
over  one  thousand  ophthalmic  cases !  I  shall  refer  to  this  subject 
again. 

When  the  first  of  them  landed  here,  November  17,  1823,  they  were 
objects  of  curiosity,  many  natives  following  them  to  the  house,  and 
the  boys  running  before  to  secure  a  good  view ;  now  they  are  as 
much  a  landmark  of  Beyrout  and  its  history  as  the  very  pine-groves 
in  the  suburbs. 

Amongst  other  works,  they  have  published  The  Pilgrim's  Progress, 
and  Oriental  readers  are  now  enjoying  acquaintance  with  Worldly 
Wiseman  and  other  characters  of  good  old  John  Bunyan,  as  I  did 
twoscore  years  ago,  and  equally,  I  hope,  to  their  profit.  The  Ameri- 
can Protestant  press,  first  established  A.D.  1822  in  Malta,  printed  the 
amount  of  287,150  copies  of  religious  matter,  in  Italian,  modern 
Greek,  Armeno-Turkish,  and  Greco-Turkish.  December  23,  1834, 
this  press  was  removed  to  Smyrna,  Heman  Hallock  and  Daniel 
Temple  being  the  printers.  It  has  been  the  very  fulcrum  of  Archi- 
medes to  move  the  world  of  Oriental  ignorance.  It  arrived  here 
May  8,  1854,  at  which  time  there  were  eight  presses  in  the  Holy 
Land,  all  given  to  the  promulgation  of  sectarian  error. 

My  note  of  Dr.  "W  M.  Thomson  is  this :  Something  over  seventy, 
portly  but  vigorous,  florid  face,  courteous  expression.  Reminds  me 
of  old  Zach.  Taylor,  with  whom  I  once  travelled  on  the  Mississippi 
river.  Paces  his  parlor  in  his  red-painted  Damascus  slippers,  smokes 
and  talksi,  all  at  the  same  time.  For  this  veteran  missionary,  to  stand 
by  the  grave  of  Pliny  Fisk,  the  mild  and  mellow  light  of  these 
Mediterranean  shores  flowing  through  the  cypresses,  must  bring  a 
gush  of  devotion  which  memory  will  retain  forever  and  forever. 

I  throw  a  few  notes  together  here,  preferring  to  insert  them  in  this 
ohaotic  state  than  to  omit  them  altogether: 

At  the  mission-press  they  are  completing  a  thorough  concordance 
to  the  Holy  Scriptures,  in  the  Arabic  language.  Sitting  in  their 
house  of  worship  at  Beyrout,  on  my  first  Sabbath  here,  it  was  start- 
ling, in  the  midst,  to  hearken  to  the  sound  of  the  trumpet  (Jeremiah 
vi.  17)  blown  by  the  Turkish  troops  in  the  garrison,  recalling  the 
unpleasant  fact  that  the  Moslems,  the  Jews,  and  the  Christians  each 
have  a  diiferent  day  called  Sabbath.  A  society  was  established  in 


234  SYRIAN   UNIVERSITY. 

1861,  entitled  Women's  Union  Missionary  Society  of  America  fof 
Heathen  Lands,  designed  to  extend  Christian  blessings  to  heathen 
women.  A  missionary,  returning  to  his  field  in  Turkey,  writes  to 
one  of  our  papers  of  the  joy  and  pride  with  which  he  looked  upon 
the  new  American  College  at  Constantinople.  It  stands  perched 
high  on  the  northern  bluff  of  the  Bosphorus,  just  above  the  old 
fortress  of  Europe.  The  site  is  the  finest  in  the  whole  length  of  that 
classic  strait  The  wonder  is  that  the  Turks  should  ever  have  sur- 
rendered so  choice  a  spot  for  such  a  use.  The  building  is  a  very 
handsome  one,  of  stone,  with  Mansard  roof.  But  even  now  it  proves 
insufficient  for  the  pupils  who  apply,  even  at  the  rate,  for  tuition  and 
board,  of  $200  for  one  year.  They  reckon  every  Jew  converted  in 
Palestine  as  worth,  to  Christianity,  a  thousand  converted  anywhere 
else.  In  1835  the  editor  of  the  Missionary  Herald  wrote  pathetically 
that  the  managers  of  this  mission  had  sought  in  vain  for  a  pious  and 
competent  physician.  C.  N.  Righter,  devoted  to  Bible  distribution, 
died  in  the  Oriental  field  December  16,  1856.  His  theory  of  labor 
was  to  bring  back  to  the  East  the  same  Bible  and  Gospels,  in  their 
purity,  whence  we  received  them  1,800  years  ago.  The  missionaries 
teach  that  the  Word  of  God  is  fire  and  the  hammer;  when  it  goes 
forth  it  will  accomplish  that  whereunto  it  is  sent.  In  educating 
orphan  children,  the  teachers  often  give  them  the  names  of  their 
benefactors  in  America  who  assume  the  payment  for  proteges,  and  it 
is  not  uncommon  to  hear  such  names  as  Peter  Jones,  John.  Brown, 
etc^  applied  to  a  boy  who  carries  "  Ishmael "  on  his  every  feature. 

The  Syrian  University  was  incorporated  a  few  years  since,  under 
the  laws  of  New  York.  It  has  a  literary  course  of  four  years,  and 
a  medical  department ;  the  language  of  instruction  is  Arabic.  Its 
first  class  graduated  July,  1870.  It  has  a  fine  campus  of  twenty 
acres,  valuable  philosophical,  chemical,  and  medical  apparatus, 
a  good  telescope,  a  respectable  library,  an  herbarium  of  6,000  Oriental 
plants,  and  fair  collections  in  geology  and  mineralogy.  In  February, 
1871,  they  received  four  Copt  students,  from  a  town  500  miles  up  the 
Nile.  These  are  well  supplied  with  funds,  and  promise  great  useful- 
ness on  their  return  home. 

At  the  laying  of  the  corner-stone  of  their  new  building,  Dec.  7, 
1871,  the  weather  was  charming.  The  warm  Syrian  sun  beamed 
down  with  cloudless  brightness,  and  throngs  of  the  American,  English, 
German,  and  Syrian  population  assembled  on  the  site  of  the  new 
College  building.  This  site  is  a  noble,  elevated  promontory  on  the 
north  side  of  Cape  Beirut,  a  mile  west  of  the  city,  commanding  an 
unobstructed  view  of  the  sea,  the  Lebanon  range,  and  a  portion  of 
the  city. 

The  exercises  were  opened  by  an  introductory  address  by  the  Rev. 


PLANTING   THE   CORNER-STONE.  235 

Dr.  Bliss,  President  of  the  College,  who  made  a  brief  statement  of  the 
design  of  the  Syrian  Protestant  College  ;  its  scope,  and  especially  the 
religious  element  in  its  course  of  instruction.  He  urged  that  al- 
though direct  proselytizing  is  not  aimed  at  in  the  institution,  yet  it 
is  the  intention  of  its  Faculty  that  no  young  man  shall  enter  its  halls 
and  complete  his  studies  without  a  thorough  knowledge  of  the 
Christian  system  and  of  the  way  of  salvation  in  Jesus  Christ.  He 
may  enter  as  a  heathen,  but  he  cannot  leave  without  seeing  and 
knowing  what  it  is  to  be  a  Christian.  These  halls  will  be  open  to 
Christian  and  Pagan,  Moslem  and  Jew,  Druse  and  Nusairy ;  but  all 
will  learn  that  there  is  one,  and  one  only,  Inspired  Volume  of  Divine 
Eevelation,  and  one  Saviour  for  lost  and  ruined  man. 

The  Eev.  Dr.  Thomson  then  offered  prayer,  and  the  Scriptures 
were  read  by  the  Eev.  Jas.  Eobertson  of  the  Kirk  of  Scotland,  in 
English,  and  by  the  Eev.  Professor  Wortabel,  in  Arabic. 

An  address  was  then  delivered  by  the  Hon.  Wm.  E.  Dodge,  Presi- 
dent of  the  Board  of  Trustees  in  New  York,  who  stood  on  a  platform 
of  six  narrow  joists  of  Cilician  pine  (from  the  Taurus  range,  above 
Tarsus),  which  had  been  laid  across  the  stone  heaps  near  the  founda- 
tion wall.  The  following  are  extracts : 

"  We  are  assembled  this  afternoon  to  lay  the  corner-stone  of  the 
Syrian  Protestant  College.  It  may  seem  to  some  a  very  small  matter 
of  itself ;  but  there  is  connected  with  its  future,  we  doubt  not,  most 
important  results.  For  more  than  forty  years  the  American  and 
other  missionaries  have  been  patiently  laboring  to  promote  the  best 
interests  of  the  people  of  Syria,  trying  by  their  schools  and  semina- 
ries to  awaken  a  desire  for  education  ;  and  they  have  been  encouraged 
by  a  growth  from  year  to  year,  which  has  now  assumed  such  import- 
ance that  we  find  in  this  city,  and  throughout  the  greater  part  of 
Syria,  schools,  more  or  less  extensive,  for  training  boys  and  girls, 
which,  we  cannot  doubt,  are  destined  to  great  enlargement  within  a 
few  years.  This  fact  has  led  the  friends  of  the  American  and  English 
missions  to  feel  that  the  time  had  arrived  for  establishing  a  classical 
institution  of  a  high  grade,  to  be  presided  over  by  men  of  superior 
education  and  experience,  where  young  men  from  the  various  pre- 
paratory schools  of  the  country  could  have  an  opportunity  of  ob- 
taining a  thorough  classical  education,  equal  in  all  respects  to  such 
as  is  furnished  in  Europe  and  America,  fitting  them  to  fill  with 
honor  the  highest  positions,  as  instructors,  physicians,  ministers,  law- 
yers, as  well  as  the  various  civil  and  political  positions  under  the 
government;  and,  in  fact,  offering  young  men  of  all  classes  the 
opportunity  of  securing  a  thorough  classical  and  medical  education. 

'•'  For  several  years  the  institution  has  been  in  partial  operation, 


238  MB.  DODGE'S  ADDRESS. 

and  the  friends  of  the  College  have  been  so  much  encouraged  by  the 
euccess  of  the  beginning,  that  they  resolved  to  secure  a  site,  and,  if 
possible,  the  necessary  funds  to  erect  suitable  buildings.  I  am 
gratified  in  being  able  to  say  that,  through  the  liberality  of  friends 
in  America  and  England,  sufficient  funds  have  been  obtained  to 
warrant  a  commencement;  and  having  secured  this  beautiful  situa- 
tion, the  Board  of  Trustees  have  decided  at  once  to  commence  the 
erection  of  the  buildings  for  the  classical  and  medical  departments, 
and  we  are  here  to-day  formally  to  lay  the  corner-stone  of  the  first 
building.  Here  it  will  rise  in  commanding  proportions,  in  accord- 
ance with  plans  designed  by  an  eminent  American  architect ;  and 
like  a  city  set  on  a  hill,  or  as  the  lighthouse  at  the  entrance  of  your 
harbor,  it  will  be  one  of  the  first  objects  which  will  meet  the  eye  of 
the  stranger  entering  vour  port.  But  more  than  that,  we  trust  it 
will  be  a  centre  of  light  and  influence,  which,  like  streams  in  the 
desert,  shall  give  moral  life  and  beauty  to  the  hills  and  valleys  of 
Syria,  as  from  year  to  year  there  shall  go  forth  the  young  men  grad- 
uated with  honor,  and  filled  with  a  desire  to  communicate  to  others 
the  knowledge  they  have  acquired. 

"  To  those  connected  with  the  education  of  youth  in  Syria,  this 
must  be  an  occasion  of  interest,  for  the  erection  of  this  building  will 
increase  the  desire  for  higher  attainments,  and  act  as  a  stimulus  to 
other  schools.  I  am  very  happy  to  be  with  you  at  this  interesting 
time,  and  mingle  my  congratulations  with  yours,  and  be  able  to  con- 
vey to  the  friends  in  America  the  good  news  that  the  College  build- 
ing is  fairly  under  way.  May  the  blessing  of  God  attend  the  effort, 
and  prosper  all  engaged  in  the  work  of  erection,  giving  wisdom  to 
carry  out  successfully  the  plans  till  « the  top-stone  shall  be  laid  with 
rejoicing,  crying,  Grace,  grace,  unto  it;'  and  as  years  shall  go  by, 
and  those  of  us  who  have  been  permitted  to  aid  in  its  erection  shall 
have  passed  away,  this  University  shall  still  go  on  increasing  in  use- 
fulness, and  thousands  of  young  men  go  forth  from  its  halls  to  aid 
in  redeeming  and  blessing  this  land,  so  full  of  Bible  and  historic 
interest. 

"  Let  me  invoke  the  prayers  and  influence  of  all  present  in  its  be- 
half. This  is  not  a  money-making  enterprise.  It  has  been  conceived 
in  the  spirit  of  Christian  philanthropy,  and  those  engaged  in  it  have 
made  great  sacrifices,  have  left  home  and  friends  to  secure  to  this 
people  the  inestimable  blessings  of  a  thorough  classical  education. 
Appreciate  their  motives,  and  give  them  every  encouragement  And 
now,  in  accordance  with  the  custom  in  America  and  England,  I  pro- 


ulations ;  also  copies  of  the  local  papers  of  the  latest  dates.  And  now 
may  the  blessing  of  God  ever  rest  on  the  building  whose  foundation 
has  no*  ueen  laid  !  And  to  His  name  be  all  the  praise." 


DK.  FEAY'S  ADDEESS.  23? 

This  address  was  then  translated  into  Arabic  by  Dr.  H.  H.  Jessup, 
and  after  the  laying  of  the  stone,  prayer  was  offered  in  Arabic  by  Rev. 
Dr.  Van  Dyke,  when  a  young  native  physician,  Dr.  Selim  Fray,  a 
Greek  Catholic,  and  a  member  of  the  first  graduated  medical  class, 
asked  permission  to  say  a  few  words.  He  spoke  in  Arabic  as  follows : 

"I  must  ask  your  pardon,  sirs,  in  giving  utterance  to  these  few 
words,  which  the  emotions  of  my  heart  impel  me  to  offer,  regretting 
the  impotence  of  my  tongue  to  do  justice  to  such  an  occasion. 

"This  stone,  laid  before  us  as  the  corner-stone  of  this  structure 
that  is  destined  to  rise  in  noble  proportions,  expresses  a  type  of  two 
things  that  ought  not  to  escape  the  notice  of  the  sons  of  our  native 
land.  It  is  not  only  an  earnest  for  the  upbuilding  of  this  noble 
College  which  has  diffused,  as  a  sweet  fragrance,  science  and  virtue 
throughout  all  our  borders,  but  also  it  should  be  held  in  veneration 
as  an  earnest  of  the  return  of  science  and  civilization  from  the  West 
to  our  land,  in  whose  courts  the  raven  of  ignorance  and  folly  is  ever 
croaking.  Yes,  and  every  one  who  does  not  darken  his  vision  by  the 
veil  of  envy  or  partiality,  will  most  clearly  discover  that  the  laying 
of  this  stone  is  the  positive  assurance  for  the  beginning  of  a  return 
of  science  and  knowledge  to  this  our  native  land. 

"Who,  before  the  foundation  of  this  College,  taught  us  algebra  and 
arithmetic,  astronomy  and  geometry,  chemistry  and  natural  philos- 
ophy, and  the  other  mathematical  sciences  ?  Who,  before  her,  taught 
botany,  mineralogy,  natural  history,  and  medical  science  ?  To  what 
shall  I  liken  thee,  0  noble  College  ?  To  the  Star  of  the  East  ?  in 
that  thou  art  scattering  by  thy  rays  the  mists  of  the  gross  darkness 
of  ignorance  which  has  enveloped  our  native  land.  To  the  life- 
giving  fountains  ?  for  thou  hast  changed  the  wild  desert  wastes  of 
mind,  in  the  sons  of  our  land,  to  gardens  in  which  resound  the  songs 
of  science,  which  teem  with  the  flowers  and  fruits  of  knowledge. 
To  a  tender  mother?  because  thou  dost  bear  in  thy  bosom  youth  from 
whatsoever  sect  or  faith,  nourishing  them  by  thy  life-sustaining  milk, 
polishing  their  minds  and  understandings,  and  making  them  worthy 
to  be  numbered  in  the  ranks  of  civilized  nations.  Come,  then,  ye  sons 
of  fatherland!  hasten  wifch  rapid  steps  to  the  arms  of  this  tender 
mother.  Come,  let  us  drink  deep  draughts  from  her  milk ;  for  it  will 
give  life  to  our  barren  minds.  .  .  .  Let  us  entreat  the  high  and  holy 
One  to  establish  and  jealously  guard  our  beloved  Alma  Mater.  0 
Thou  our  God !  cast  Thine  eye  in  favor  upon  the  upbuilding  of  this 
noble  College,  our  Alma  Mater.  0  God,  environ  her  by  Thy  angels, 
that  they  may  shield  her  from  all  evil,  and  from  every  evil  eye.  May 
the  plots  of  her  envious  opponents  be  baffled  by  her  immovable  foun- 
dations, and  return  upon  them  in  disappointment.  0  God,  bestow 
an  abundance  of  blessing  upon  those  benefactors  who  are  giving  their 
aid  in  the  erection  of  this  College.  0,  our  God,  bestow  upon  this 
high-minded  and  excellent  man,  the  Hon.  Wm.  E.  Dodge,  who  has 


238 


CATALOGUE   OF   MISSIONARIES. 


so  honored  our  country,  a  supporting  hand ;  for  he  is  chief  among  her 
benefactors.  Restore  him,  0  Lord,  with  his  family,  to  his  native 
land  in  peace  and  safety.  Grant  them  long  life,  and  happy  days, 
overflowing  with  blessings  and  good  fortune.  ...  0  Thou,  our  God, 
richly  impart  Thy  blessing  to  the  President  of  this  College,  and  to 
her  distinguished  instructors.  Grant  them  Thy  helping  hand,  that 
they  may  perfect  this  good  and  glorious  work.  Multiply  their  benevo- 
lent aims,  and  prepare  for  each  one  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  and 
Managers,  and  each  of  the  teachers  of  this  College,  and  of  her  bene- 
factors, a  glorious  portion  in  Thy  heavenly  kingdom." 

At  Beyrout,  in  1872,  are  Dr.  Bliss,  Rev.  W.  M.  Thomson,  C.  V.  A. 
Van  Dyke,  and  Henry  H.  Jessup,  and  their  wives,  with  three  single 
ladies,  Misses  Eliza  D.  Everett,  Ellen  Jackson,  and  Sophia  B.  Loring, 
assisted  by  one  native  teacher  and  two  native  helpers.  At  Tripoli, 
fifty  miles  up  the  coast,  are  Rev.  Samuel  Jessup  and  wife,  and  two 
native  assistants.  At  Abeih,  a  few  miles  southeast  of  Beyrout,  are 
Rev.  S.  H.  Calhoun  and  "Win.  Bird,  with  their  wives,  and  five  native 
assistants.  At  Sidon,  Rev^W.  W.  Eddy  and  wife,  Rev.  James  S. 
Dennis,  and  three  assistants.~Thirty-bne  outlying  stations,  all  within 
sixty  miles  of  Beyrout,  are  connected  with  this  great  mission,  which 
may  God  in  power  and  mercy  greatly  bless.  Other  missions,  for 
which  I  have  not  space  here,  are  also  at  work  throughout  these  moun- 
tains of  old  King  Hiram.  One  pious  lady,  Mrs.  Bowen  Thompson, 
for  many  years  devoted  to  establishing  Christian  schools  for  girls, 
had  succeeded  in  organizing  nearly  one  hundred  of  this  class  when, 
November  14th,  1869,  she  was  summoned  to  her  reward. 


THE  TWO  SIDES   OF  THE   BINO  OF   PHARAOH   THOTHME3. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

FOLLOWING  THE   RAFTSMEN. 

T  was  strictly  in  accordance  with  my  original  pledge  to  the 
generous  Masons  who  furnished  me  the  "sinews  of  war" 
for  these  explorations,  that  I  should  follow  the  ancient 
raftsmen  of  Hiram,  from  the  shores  where  they  made  up 
their  "notes"  in  the  Masonic  Bay  to  the  place  of  debark- 
ation in  the  port  of  Joppa.  The  timbers  were  all  felled  and  prepared 
in  the  forests  of  Lebanon,  says  the  old  writer,  conveyed  by  sea  in 
"notes"  (sic)  to  Joppa,  and  from  thence  by  land  to  Jerusalem.  On 
the  last  day  of  April,  1868,  therefore,  I  undertook  this  part  of  my 
pilgrimage. 

My  notes  here  are  of  course  sketchy  and  desultory.  The  day  of 
my  passage  was  fair,  and  nothing  on  earth  can  be  grander  to  the 
voyager  than  the  passage  down  this  historical  coast.  Eye,  mind, 
pencil,  all  were  busy ;  and  if  my  readers  can  enjoy  a  dish  of  hash, 
Voila  I  here  it  is. 

Moving  out  of  the  Bay  of  St.  George  on  the  Austrian  steamer — I 
forget  the  name,  a  miserable  affair,  table  poorly  supplied,  officers  as 
incommunicable  as  the  Royal  Arch  Word — I  had  a  good  view,  through 
old  Bishop  Gobat's  field-glass,  of  the  town  of  Gebal,  about  twelve 
miles  in  the  north.  From  its  stony  caskets  (sarcophagi)  I  had  pro- 
cured hundreds  of  seals,  signets,  and  beads,  composed  of  opal,  corne- 
lian, jasper,  agate,  chalcedony,  and  other  hard  and  precious  stones,  of 
all  colors  and  compositions.  As  in  olden  times,  the  signet  was  used 
to  ratify  such  social  and  religious  transactions  as  called  for  a  sacred 
pledge,  so  every  person  of  the  least  note  or  consequence  possessed 
one ;  and,  like  the  spear  and  pipe  of  the  American  Indian,  it  was  de- 
posited with  its  owner  in  his  tomb.  Herodotus,  speaking  in  his  day  of 
the  Assyrians,  declares  that  every  man  possessed  one,  even  as  every  Arab 
sheikh  does  now.  Ledvard,  who  found  numbers  of  them  among  the 


240  PASSING   SIDON. 

ruins  of  Nineveh,  etc.,  says  they  were  anciently  used  by  inserting 
them  in  a  metal  axis,  and  applying  them  like  the  garden  rolling- 
stone.  But  at  present  they  are  made  flat,  and  applied  by  one  firm 
pressure  of  the  hand  to  the  wax,  as  I  saw  Mohammed  Kaschid  Pasha 
and  Xoureddin  Effendi  apply  theirs. 

So  exquisitely  are  some  of  these  objects  engraved,  that  we 
must  conclude  their  artists  understood  the  use  of  the  microscope, 
although  history  is  silent  upon  the  subject.  A  cylinder  one  half- 
inch  high,  and  the  same  in  diameter,  has  five  human  figures  upon  it, 
with  accessory  matters,  each  perfectly  drawn.  The  story  of  stout 
old  Charlemagne  sounds  well  in  tliis  connection.  He  inserted  his 
signet  in  the  hilt  of  his  sword,  and  swore,  "  What  I  sign  with  the  hilt 
I  will  maintain  with  the  point!" 

The  question  as  to  whether  the  raftsmen  of  Hiram  encountered 
dangerous  winds  along  this  coast,  cannot  be  answered  until  we  are 
told  at  what  seasons  of  the  year  the  work  of  "  logging  "  was  done.  If 
in  the  summer,  the  gales  are  always  auspicious  between  Beyrout  and 
Joppa;  and  with  a  moderate  spread  of  sail,  such  as  the  artist  has  dis- 
played on  the  rafts  in  my  Masonic  map,  the  distance,  150  miles,  was 
rapidly  and  pleasantly  accomplished.  By  steamer  it  takes  only  four- 
teen hours. 

One  must  withdraw  from  the  Phoanician  coast  about  ten  miles,  to 
appreciate  how  narrow  a  shelf  of  land  that  kingdom  was.  I  could 
imagine  that  once  the  sea  ran  close  under  the  mountain's  massive 
rocks,  but  that,  in  process  of  ages,  they  disentegrated  sufficiently  to 
compose  the  scanty  soil  we  see. 

Past  the  mouth  of  the  Damour  River,  with  its  great  grove  of  mul- 
berry trees.  Past  Sidon,  to  be  remembered  for  the  hospitality  of  the 
missionaries,  which  I  had  enjoyed  so  recently.  1  can  almost  select 
their  house  from  the  mass  of  flat-roofed  buildings  facing  the  sea. 
May  God  bless  that  house! 

Bishop  Gobat  talks  with  me  about  Freemasonry.  He  preached 
last  Sunday  against  the  Abyssinian  war  in  which  "England  is  now 
engaged.  The  old  man  was  long  a  missionary  to  Abyssinia,  and  the 
way  he  denounced  the  British  government  for  this  unprovoked  and 
incalled-for  invasion  of  an  innocent  people,  was  hard  on  the  group 
of  British  officials  in  the  congregation.  He  asks  me  now  what  is  there 
in  Syria  and  Palestine  for  Freemasons  to  do.  I  reply  that  much  illus- 
trating the  doctrine  and  history  of  ancient  Masonry  is  yet  to  come 
to  light  On  coins,  on  broken  statuary,  on  fragments  of  pottery,  in 


PASSING   TYKE.  241 

the  recesses  of  caves,  anywhere,  at  any  hour,  without  a  moment's 
warning,  the  greatest  and  most  important  evidences  of  Masonic  anti- 
quity may  spring  forth  to  view,  to  confound  the  skeptic,  confirm  the 
wavering,  gladden  the  faithful,  and  gag  the  mouths  of  those  within  our 
own  affiliation  who  are  trying  to  break  down  our  traditional  claims. 
After  eight  centuries  of  researches,  the  world  of  Bible-believers  and 
Christian-believers  have  brought  more  genuine  evidence  to  light  dur- 
ing the  past  ten  years  than  in  all  previous  ages.  What,  then,  may 
we  not  hope  from  Masonic  researches  now,  in  the  latter  half  of  the 
nineteenth  century,  but  just  begun?  The  great  Barclay  quarry 
under  Jerusalem  should  be  explored,  every  inch  of  it,  walls,  ceiling, 
and  floor.  .  .  .  But  here  we  are  interrupted  by  a  call  to  as  poor 
a  steamship  dinner  as  I  ever  sat  down  to.  Either  the  cooking  or  the 
motion  of  the  sea  so  disagrees  with  my  stomach,  that  when  we  get 
about  opposite  Klian  Younas  (where  Jonah  was  vomited  on  shore)  I 
give  up  the  unsavory  mess  to  the  sea,  and  resume  my  pencil. 

Past  Tyre.  Am  reminded  that  all  along  this  coast  large  pieces 
of  glass,  and  the  dross  and  slag  of  glass  furnaces,  lie  among  the 
ruins.  I  carry  home  a  very  considerable  quantity  of  these  for 
specimens.  What  Pliny  says  of  the  origin  of  glass  manuftfctures, 
applies  strictly  to  this  section  of  the  country.  At  the  present  time, 
some  of  the  most  beautiful  glassware  in  use  -is  made  at  Sandwich 
and  East  Cambridge,  Mass.  This  is  remarkable  for  its  clearness 
and  lack  of  color,  and  much  of  it  is  exported  to  Europe.  Jose- 
phus,  in  his  Wars  (IX.,  xlv.  2),  refers  to  the  glass  of  Tyre.  In  the 
Beni  Hassan  tombs  of  Egypt,  glass  is  found  of  the  period  B.C. 
2000  to  3500,  according  to  different  chronologies.  Among  my  most 
curious  specimens  gathered  at  Tyre,  is  a  glass  bottle,  evidently  of 
the  very  earliest  period  of  the  manufacture,  and  now  in  my  office 
at  La  Grange,  Ky.  There  is  nothing  directly  said  in  the  Scriptures 
of  glass,  though  no  doubt  allusions  to  it  may  be  found.  The  word 
only  occurs  once,  in  Job  xxviii.  7,  as  "  crystal."  It  comes  from  a 
Hebrew  word,  signifying  "to  be  pure,"  and  refers  to  a  species  of 
glass  formerly  held  in  high  esteem.  The  skill  of  the  ancients  in 
the  manufacture  of  glass  was  such  that  they  not  only  made  it  of 
a  crystalline  purity,  shaped  it  by  blowing,  ground  it  by  lathes,  and 
carved  it  like  silver,  but  by  its  use  imitated  every  known  marble 
and  every  sort  of  precious  stone.  In  the  Museum  Victorium,  at 
Rome,  there  are  two  ancient  gems,  both  counterfeits,  one  a  chryso- 
lite, the  other  an  emerald,  but  perfectly  well  executed,  perfectly 

16 


242  PASSING  THK   LADDER  OF  TYRE. 

transparent  and  colored  throughout,  and  both  externally  and  in- 
ternally free  from  the  smallest  blemish.  The  mixture  used  by 
ancient  glass-makers,  according  to  Pliny,  was  three  parts  nitrum  to  one 
part  sand;  and  the  Belus-sand,  just  below  Tyre,  near  Acre,  was 
held  in  such  repute  for  its  purity  and  cleanliness,  that  great  quan- 
tities were  exported  to  Europe  and  elsewhere  for  this  manufacture. 
Glass  was  formerly  used  for  wainscotting  churches  and  dwellings, 
also  for  coffins,  personal  ornaments,  drinking-vessels,  mosaic  work 
jn  walls  and  pavements,  figures  of  deities,  etc.  The  Egyptians  had 
learned  to  permeate  the  materials  with  designs  of  ancient  colors. 
Among  the  tessera  of  mosaic  pavements  which  I  brought  home  to 
America,  many  are  of  glass.  While  in  the  minaret  of  the  great 
mosque  in  Damascus,  I  purchased  quite  a  handful  of  these,  which 
are  beautiful.  At  Pompeii  glass  windows  were  found.  ...  So 
much  on  the  vitreous  theme. 

Past  Scala  Tyrorum,  the  Ladder  of  Tyre.  As  old  Samuel  John- 
son says,  on  these  shores  were  the  four  great  empires  of  the  world 
— the  Assyrian,  the  Persian,  the  Greek,  and  the  Roman.  All  our 
religion,  almost  all  our  law,  almost  all  our  arts,  almost  all  that 
sets  us*above  the  savage,  have  come  to  us  from  these  shores.  Here, 
at  Promontorium  Album,  this  White  Cape  (Ras-el-Abyad,  the  Arabs 
call  it),  the  mountains  close  into  the  sea  much  as  they  do  at  the 
mouth  of  Dog  River,  where  the  inscriptions  are.  A  military  road 
was  opened  across  this  point,  which,  ascending  in  zigzags,  is  named 
the  Ladder  of  Tyre.  The  pass  is  styled  Ras-en-Nakoorah,  and  there 
is  a  town  in  ruins  near  by,  to  which  the  great  name  of  Alexander 
(Scantier oon,  as  pronounced  here)  is  applied.  At  the  top  of  this  pass 
is  a  tower  called  Candle-tower,  or  Light-house  (Kulaat-esh-Shema). 
What  a  landmark  this  white  cape  must  have  been  to  the  raftsmen 
whose  course  I  am  pursuing,  and  how  useful  to  them  in  dark  nights 
the  Candle-tower  on  the  top ! 

In  full  sight  of  Mount  Hermon,  bearing  now  not  far  from  due 
east,  and  some  forty  miles  distant  Its  isolated  cone,  tipped  with 
snow,  presents  a  noble  appearance.  A  small  hill  near  it,  borrowing 
some  of  its  peculiar  claims,  is  styled  Abu  Nedy,  the  Father  of  Dew, 
because  the  clouds  seem  to  cling  with  peculiar  fondness  round  its 
wooded  top,  reflecting  the  genial  influences  of  the  grand  mountain- 
are  above. 

Passing  the  Plain  of  Acre,  old  Accho  of  the  Bible,  the  St  Jean 
d'Acre  of  the  Crusaders.  I  have  just  looked  through  a  copy  of  the 


PASSING  ACB1  243 

London  Times,  so  dear  to  every  Englishman's  breast,  which  lies  on 
the  cabin-table,  and  have  tried,  as  I  have  a  hundred  times  before,  to 
interest  myself  in  it  I  took  it  for  six  months,  in  1859,  and  can 
only  repeat  now  what  I  said  then,  after  paying  an  exorbitant  bill  of 
subscription :  "  It  is  the  dullest  newspaper  I  ever  came  across.''"  It 
was  started  in  1788,  and  probably  got  enough  vis  inertia  at  that 
time  to  keep  it  running  these  eighty  years ;  certainly  the  motive- 
power  is  not  inside  of  it. 

But  Acre,  city  of  glorious  associations !  I  will  devote  some  pages 
to  its  history  in  my  chapter  on  Knights  Templars,  and  at  present 
only  note  the  current  thoughts  that  arise.  The  sight  of  the  British 
flag,  always  a  pleasant  one  to  me,  recalls  the  wonderful  defence  of 
Acre  made  by  our  gallant  brother  Mason,  Sidney  Smith,  in  1799, 
against  the  French  army,  under  that  other  gallant  Masonic  brother, 
Napoleon  Bonaparte.  The  union  jack,  denoting  the  British  vessels 
here,  was  adopted  in  their  naval  service  January,  1,  1801.  Before 
that  it  was  a  union  of  the  old  banner  of  St.  George,  white,  with  a  red 
cross.  This  was  joined,  April  12,  1606,  with  the  banner  of  Scot- 
land, Hue,  with  a  white  diagonal  cross. 

This  historical  Plain  of  Acre  is  connected  yonder  with  the  big  prai- 
rie-laud of  Esdraelon  by  a  narrow  pass,  swampy  and  full  of  rushes  and 
alder,  through  which  the  Kishon,  "that  ancient  river,"  flows,  and  there 
a  genial  English  writer,  in  1869,  professes  to  have  found  a  crocodile! 
The  map  shows  that  if  you  set  a  compass. at  the  gate  of  Acre,  and 
sweep  a  semicircle  from  north,  eastward  to  south,  you  include  the 
whole  plain.  Every  movement  of  these  billows  recalls  the  throb  of 
friendship's  heart ;  every  voice  of  these  waters,  the  whispers  of  love 
which  made  the  bond  of  the  Christian  crusades. 

But  the  Governor  of  Acre,  with  whom  our  good  brother  Sidney 
Smith  so  genially  hobnobbed  while  warding  off  the  assaults  of  the 
French  army.  It  was  no  other  than  "  the  Butcher-Kuler,"  Djezzar 
Pasha,  who,  in  the  old  Hebrew  allegory,  would  have  been  justly 
named  Magor-missabib,  "fear  round  about"  (Jeremiah  xx.  3),  one 
of  those  whom  the  prophet  Isaiah  describes  (x.  2)  as  decreeing  un- 
righteous decrees,  writing  grievousness,  turning  aside  the  needy  from 
judgment,  taking  away  the  right  of  the  poor  of  the -people,  making 
widows  their  prey,  and  robbing  the  fatherless.  The  Turkish  system 
of  government  opens  the  broadest  way  for  injustice,  in  such  hands; 
all  responsibility  to  mortal  power  being  taken  away,  we  cannot  but 
rejoice  that  there  is  such  a  thing  as  death  to  break  the  staff  of  the 


wicked,  and  the  sceptre  of  the  rulers  (Isaiah  xiv.  5).  Djezzar 
seems  to  have  taken  for  his  model  the  Governor  Felix  of  Paul's  time, 
the  man  who  ruled  Judea  with  the  power  of  a  king  but  the  soul  of  a 
slave,  the  tyrant  capable  of  every  crime ;  and  he  well  illustrates  the 
dog-like  rage  and  arrogant  folly  of  idiots  advanced  to  be  governors. 
How  many  cases  of  poisoning,  how  many  mutilations,  what  untold 
floods  of  human  misery,  has  yonder  city  witnessed. 

Past  Caifa.  Here  Mr.  G-.  D.  Hardegg  has  his  German  colony,  in 
which  I  am  the  happy  possessor  of  a  "lot,"  bought  in  1871.  I  will 
refer  to  it  again.  A  traveller  describes  the  gates  of  Caifa  covered,  in 
1836,  with  bulls'  hides,  like  the  shields  of  Homer.  That  best  of  Ori- 
ental Masons,  E.  T.  Rogers,  was  British  Consul  here  for  many  years, 
and  here  his  intelligent  sister,  Miss  Rogers,  wrote  her  best  of  books, 
on  "  Domestic  Life  in  the  Holy  Land." 

And  here  is  Mount  Carmel,  greatly  admired  for  the  regularity  of 
its  form,  shaped  like  a  sugar-loaf,  having  rather  the  appearance  of 
art  than  nature.  Stewart  says  in  summer  this  promontory  is  undis- 
turbed by  storms.  This  fact  has  its  bearing,  as  I  have  before  hinted, 
upon  the  amount  of  skill  and  daring  necessary  to  float  the  cedar-rafts 
from  Beyrout  to  Joppa.  Just  below  are  those  mountains  of  masonry 
that  even  now  afford  an  inexhaustible  supply  of  material  for  the 
masons  of  Beyrout,  called  The  Castle  of  the  Pilgrims,  built  during 
the  crusades.  Lynch  referred  to  this  view  when  he  was  here  in 
1848. 

Off  "  the  nose  "  of  Carmel  is  a  group  of  pelicans  solemnly  fishing. 
I  always  admire  the  piscatorial  gravity  which  a  pelican  puts  on  when 
he  goes  a-fishing.  No  cnatting,  no  loud  laughter.  If  he  gets  a  hook 
in  his  fingers,  or  a  sculpin  steals  his  bait,  or  he  breaks  his  fishpole, 
he  takes  the  thing  as  a  necessary  incident  of  the  sport,  and  tries 
again.  I  have  had  so  much  trouble  with  noisy  companions  while 
out  fishing  on  Saturdays,  that  I  shall  ever  respect  the  pelican  as  a 
model  fishist  Counting  three  hundred  and  sixty-one  of  them  in  the 
gang,  I  fall  to  reckoning  how  many  pounds  of  fish  are  necessary  for 
the  daily  rations  of  these  voracious  fowl.  The  name,  if  my  natural 
history  is  not  all  afloat,  is  Pelicanus  onocrotalus;  a  very  appropriate 
title,  too,  for  that  forlorn  one  yonder,  sitting  on  a  floating  piece  of 
wreck,  in  a  pensive  attitude,  if  ever  I  saw  pensiveness.  He  reminds 
me  for  all  the  world  of  the  Grand  Treasurer  of  the  Grand  Lodge  of 

in  his  pensive  attitude,  when  the  Grand  Lodge  is  voting  away 

all  its  funds  in  spite  of  his  protests. 


PYTHAGORAS   AT   CARMEL. 


245 


'  Mount  Carmel  is  intimately  connected  with,  the  life  of  the  great 
Masonic  Eitualist,  Pythagoras,  of  whom  I  spoke  in  the  fourth  chap- 
ter. This  wonderful  man  founded  the  third  school  of  philosophy, 
following  that  of  Thales  of  Miletus,  and  Xenophanes  of  Colophon. 


MOUNT   CARMEL. 

He  was  born  at  Samos,  B.C.  580.  He  was  emphatically  a  born  student, 
receiving  knowledge  successively  from  Thales,  Anaximander,  and 
other  Greek  philosophers.  He  left  no  written  instructions,  but 
strictly  followed  the  Masonic  idea  of  oral  communications ;  but  it  is 
certain  he  believed  in  the  transmigration  of  souls.  His  knowledge 
of  geometry  and  arithmetic  was  pre-eminent,  and  some  of  his  pupils 
taught  that  numbers  were  the  basis  and  essence  of  all  things.  He 
was  emphatically  a  religious  teacher,  and  some  of  his  contemporaries 
believed  him  to  be  a  god.  • 

At  the  age  of  forty  (B.C.  540)  he  opened  his  school  at  Crotona,  and 
met  with  wonderful  success.  He  formed  a  religious  brotherhood,  the 
members  being  bound  together  by  peculiar  rites  and  observances. 
Various  degrees  were  established  among  them,  and  a  period  of  proba 
tion,  in  which  the  mind  and  morals  were  severely  tested.  Everything 
done  and  taught  was  kept  profoundly  secret  from  the  world  without. 
The  Pythagoreans  had  Masonic  signs  by  which  they  recognized  each 


246  PASSING   CROCODILE   RIVER. 

other.  Temperance  was  strictly  observed,  and  the  other  three  car 
clinal  virtues  insisted  upon.  The  members  at  Crotona  were  usually 
of  the  noble  and  wealthy  class,  three  hundred  of  whom  formed  the 
Grand  Council  of  the  Society.  These  were  bound  to  Pythagoras  and 
each  other  by  a  special  vow,  a  considerable  resemblance  being  found 
between  this  and  the  Jesuit  Society  founded  by  Loyola.  In  his 
eastern  travels  he  is  known  to  have  visited  the  oracle  then  established 
in  Mount  Carmel,  just  as  Vespasian,  the  Roman  general,  did  seven 
centuries  later. 

Numerous  American  lodges  are  named  from  this  memorable  moun- 
tain, viz.,  Ohio,  No.  303;  Georgia,  150;  Massachusetts,  144,  etc. 
Among  those  to  whom  the  name  of  Pythagoras  and  his  school  at  Cro- 
tona are  given,  I  cite  Kentucky,  No.  339 ;  Georgia,  41 ;  New  York,  86 ; 
Mississippi,  48,  etc.  To  connect  the  place  still  more  intimately  with 
our  American  brotherhood,  I  write  here  the  names  of  ten  genial 
and  enlightened  craftsmen,  viz.,  John  P.  Brown  (of  Constantinople), 
Thomas  Byrde  Harris,  Edward  Jewell,  Charles  Roome,  John  Ransom, 
Henry  Clark,  John  D.  Caldwell,  J.  F.  Brennan,  John  M.  Bramwell, 
and  J.  C.  Batchelor. 

The  adage  of  Pythagoras,  Abstineto  afabis,  Don't  eat  beans,  which 
has  puzzled  commentators  so  long,  refers,  no  doubt,  to  one  of  his  dgc- 
trines  of  metempsychosis,  that  departed  souls  were  enshrined  in  the 
centre  of  beans.  His  peculiar  views  on  that  subject  are  well  ex- 
pressed in  the  following  lines: 

Err  at  et  illinc 

Hue  yiuit  hinc  illuc  et  quoslibet  occupat  arttts, 
Spiritus:  equeferis  humana  in  corpora  transit, 
Ingueferas  noster. 

That  is  to  say,  the  human  soul  wanders  about,  and  comes  from  that 
spot  to  this,  and  from  this  to  that,  and  takes  possession  of  any  limbs 
it  may ;  it  both  passes  from  the  beast  into  human  bodies,  and  from 
us  into  beasts. 

Passed  the  mouth  of  Crocodile  River.  Dr.  W.  M.  Thomson 
suggested  twenty  years  ago  that  crocodiles  might  still  be  found  there, 
and  in  1869  (the  year  after  my  visit  to  the  country)  an  English 
tourist  avers  that  he  saw  one  in  the  Kishon,  close  by.  This  need  not 
astonish  us  too  much.  In  the  American  Journal  of  Science,  January, 
1870,  Prof.  Wyman  describes  a  crocodile  killed  recently  in  Florida, 
where  nobody  would  think  of  looking  for  them. 


IN  SIGHT  OF  JOPPA.  2-i? 

Passed  Caesarea  as  the  sun  was  setting  quietly  under  its  canopy  of 
crimson,  gold,  and  blue.  In  these  sunsets,  of  which  I  never  weary, 
there  is  a  splendor  peculiar  to  these  Oriental  climes.  Here  at  Csesarea 
preached  the  great  missionary  apostle  Paul,  for  two  years  chained,  "  an 
embassador  in  bonds."  His  seventeen  links  taught,  in  his  figurative 
imagination,  these  seventeen  Christian  principles:  Charity,  without 
hypocrisy ;  fraternity,  politeness  and  civility,  fervor,  hope,  joy,  patience, 
amiability,  concord  and  humility,  pardon  of  enemies,  love  of  neigh- 
bors, eagerness  for  the  wants  of  the  saints,  a  blessing  upon  persecu- 
tors, rejoicing  with  the  rejoicing,  weeping  with  the  weeper,  overcom- 
ing evil  with  good.  What  lessons  have  these  fifty  generations  learned 
through  that  Eoman  chain !  Sandys  says,  the  houses  in  Caesarea 
are  now  level  with  the  floor,  the  haven  is  lost,  and  the  situation  aban- 
doned. 

A  passenger  describes  a  pilgrim  caravan  that  landed  at  Joppa  a  few 
weeks  since,  as  a  small  vessel  loaded  with  seventy-two  passengers, 
Greeks,  Armenians,  Turks,  Arabs,  both  white  and  black,  baptized 
Jews,  a  Greek  woman,  and  a  missionary,  hadjis,  soldiers,  officers,  all 
colors,  bond  and  free. 

At  midnight  our  anchor  drops.  I  come  on  deck ;  yonder  two  miles 
south  is  Joppa,  sprawling  all  over  a  round  hill,  "  a  moderate  hill, 
rounded  off  at  the  summit,"  the  stars  shining  so  brightly  that  I  can 
almost  count  the  houses  in  it.  The  view  is  sublime.  The  great  con- 
stellation Scorpio,  with  its  forty-four  stars,  hangs  directly  over  the 
city,  sparkling  with  a  brilliancy  that  is  surprising.  Its  principal  star, 
Antares,  always  exhibiting  a  remarkably  blood-red  appearance,  seems 
exactly  in  the  range  of  the  expanded  tuft  of  a  palm-tree  that  crowns 
the  hill  in  the  centre  of  the  town.  I  shall  never  look  at  that  starry 
group  again  without  associating  it  with  the  tree,  the  town,  and  this 
glorious  midnight  hour.  It  is  a  strange  coincidence  that  the  Jewish 
astrologers,  mapping  out  the  heavens  among  the  twelve  tribes  of 
Israel,  apportioned  the  constellation  of  Scorpio  to  Dan,  the  tribe  to 
which  yonder  town  of  Joppa  belonged.  Did  Jonah,  when  he  fled 
from  this  port  towards  Tarshish,  see  that  crimson- star,  Antares?  It 
must  have  appeared  to  him  an  avenging  meteor,  the  eye  of  insulted 
Deity !  Yonder  too  is  Andromeda,  in  the  constellation  of  Taurus.  Her 
ad  ventures  with  Perseus  and  the  sea-monster  occurred  here  at  Joppa, 
else  history  is  at  fault ;  and 

"Still  in  the  heavens  her  captive  form  remains, 
And  on  her  wrists  still  hang  the  galling  chains." 


248  LAU8   DEO. 

-  How  the  raftsmen  of  Hiram  must  hare  revelled  at  the  end  of  one 
of  their  arduous  tasks.  I  imagine  them  gazing  from  this  bay  upon 
that  concave  of  celestial  imagery,  such  as  American  skies  never  pre- 
sent, and  bursting  into  songs  of  praise  to  the  powers  that  had  brought 
them  safely  to  the  close  of  their  journey.  Let  me  in  like  manner 
praise  the  Lord,  who  has  thus  far  led  me  on  my  appointed  way,  and 
then  retiring  to  rest,  gain  needed  strength  for  to-morrow's  work. 

Bless  the  Lord,  oh  my  soul ;  and  all  that  is  within  me,  bless  his  holy 
name. 

Bless  the  Lord,  oh  my  soul :  and  forget  not  all  his  benefits : 

Who  forgiveth  all  thine  iniquities ;  who  healeth  all  thy  diseases ; 

Who  redeemeth  thy  life  from  destruction ;  who  crowneth  thee  with 
loving- kindness  and  tender  mercies ; 

Who  satisfieth  thy  mouth  with  good  things ;  so  that  thy  youth  is 
renewed  like  the  eagle's  (Ps.  ciii). 


COIN     OF     LVSIMACHU8:    HEAD   OF   ALEXANDER,    WITH     THE   AMMCH 

HORN. 


DIVISION  SIXTH  -JOPPA. 


Land  of  antiquity  and  tradition, — land  where  customs  are  landmarks — where 
the  dress,  the  food,  the  highways,  the  nomenclature,  the  salutations,  the  marriage 
rites  and  the  burial  rites — all  that  make  one  people  different  from  another — 
are  continued  as  they  originated,  forty  or  fifty  centuries  since,  in  the  very  be- 
ginning of  human  history, — land  whose  very  dust  on  which  travellers'  tread 
was  once  sentient,  the  atoms  of  nations  long  destroyed, — where  each  hill  and 
valley  has  its  tale  of  horror  and  mortal  woe ; — land  of  Judaism,  Freemasonry, 
Christianity,  and  Mohammedanism  1 

I  have  considered  Bible  emblems  as  Masonic  property.  All  emblems  of  di- 
vine origin  are  Masonic  property ;  wherein  they  teach  threatenings  or  praises, 
penalties  or  rewards,  encouragement  or  discouragement,  faith,  hope,  or  charity, 
brotherly  love,  relief,  or  truth,  temperance,  fortitude,  prudence,  or  justice, — they 
are,  as  an  old  Scotch  writer  calls  them,  "  the  surprising  eloquence  of  heaven  " 
to  the  Freemason's  soul.  Things  apparently  carnal  and  trifling  are  made,  in 
the  Holy  "Writings,  to  foreshadow  the  wisest  purposes  of  God.  Almost  every 
object  in  nature  is  an  illustrator  of  inspired  truth,  truth  such  as  forms  the  light, 
warmth,  and  salt  of  the  Masonic  rituals.  In  this  sense  I  have  incorporated 
them  into  my  book,  and  so,  I  trust,  given  a  new  direction  to  Masonic  study. 

As  the  first  three  Masons,  Solomon,  Hiram  the  King,  and  Hiram  the  Archi- 
tect, are  associated  with  and  have  made  illustrious  their  respective  cities,  Jeru- 
salem, Tyre,  Gebal,  so  I  have  felt  at  liberty,  being  the  first  Masonic  traveller 
and  author  in  this  field,  to  locate,  at  marked  and  important  points,  the  names 
of  many  persons  known  to  me  as  eminent  in  the  theory  or  practice  of  Freema- 
sonry. Thus  I  have  given  to  the  genus  loci  of  each  site  one  or  more  worthy 
companions,  and  dctted  the  Masonic  Map  of  Palestine  here  and  there  with  il- 
lustrious moderns 


CHAPTER  XVII 

THE   PORT  OF   JOPPA. 

HE  fifth  of  the  Seven  Grand  Masonic  Localities  visited 
and  identified  during  my  researches  in  the  Holy  Land,  ia 
Joppa,  at  which  ancient  and  far-famed  port  I  arrived  May 
1st,  a  few  minutes  after  midnight,  it  being  then  about  4.30 
P.M.  at  La  Grange,  Kentucky.  To  secure  a  bountiful  sup- 
ply of  relics  and  specimens  from  Joppa,  I  had  sent  my  assistant 
there,  and  he  had  given  uninterrupted  attention  to  the  locality  for 
several  weeks. 

Joppa,  now  termed  Jaffa,  is  a  port  of  little  importance  in  mod- 
ern times,  save  as  being  the  landing-place  of  pilgrims  to  Jerusalem* 
Steamships  and  war-vessels  cannot  approach  within  two  miles 
of  it  It  lies  in  latitude  32°  3'  north,  longitude  34°  44'  east  of 
Greenwich.  The  population  is  about  7,000  souls,  nearly  one-half  of 
them  Christians.  Formerly  it  was,  next  to  Jerusalem,  the  most 
important  city  in  the  possession  of  the  Jews.  There  being  no  other 
harbor  on  all  this  coast,  Joppa  was,  of  course,  the  place  of  transit  for 
the  immense  accumulations  of  wood  and  metal  collected  in  various 
parts  of  the  world  for  the  construction  of  King  Solomon's  Temple. 

In  the  Masonic  system  the  port  of  Joppa  holds  a  conspicuous  place, 
occurring  in  the  lectures  of  the  Entered  Apprentice,  still  more  promi- 
nently in  those  of  the  Master  Mason,  and  most  of  all  in  those  of  the 
Mark  Master.  It  was  to  Joppa  that  Jonah  fled  from  the  presence  of 
the  Lord  and  embarked  for  Tarshish.  In  the  building  of  the  Sec- 
ond Temple,  under  Zerubbabel,  B.C.  533—515,  this  city  bore  the  same 
relationship  to  the  work  of  the  architect  as  in  the  first ;  but  when 
Herod  constructed  the  third  Temple,  he  made  some  use  of  the  port 
of  Csesarea,  a  few  miles  further  north,  and  this  rendered  Joppa  a  place 
of  only  second-rate  importance. 
Joppa  is  reckoned  one  of  the  oldest  cities  in  the  world.  Tradition 


THE   POET   OF  JOPPA. 

ascribes  its  establishment  as  antediluvian,  and  associates  it  with 
mythological  narratives  of  the  very  earliest  periods.  At  present  it  is 
chiefly  celebrated  for  its  orange  groves  and  gardens  of  Oriental  pro- 
duce. The  oranges  are  the  finest  in  the  world;  and  as  they  are, 
unfortunately,  seedless,  so  that  I  cannot  collect  their  seeds  for  my 
patrons,  as  I  desired,  I  put  up  and  secured  a  supply  of  their  leaves 
for  my  cabinets ;  and  the  same  with  regard  to  the  lemons  of  Joppa, 
equally  famous  for  size  and  flavor. 

In  the  best  days  of  the  crusades,  A.D.  1099 — 1187,  pious  pilgrims 
departing  from  Joppa  went  out  upon  the  sea-shore  and  selected 
shells,  in  which  this  beach  largely  abounds ;  and  these  they  ever  after- 
wards wore  as  symbols  of  pilgrimage  and  testimonials  of  their  hav- 
ing performed  it.  I  found  so  general  a  desire,  among  my  patrons  at 
home,  to  secure  specimens  of  the  pilgrims'  shell,  that  I  brought  away 
several  thousands  of  them  for  distribution.  They  are  of  the  family 
and  species  Ostrcea  pecten  and  others. 

Agreeably  to  the  lectures  of  the  Mark  Master,  I  find  that  Joppa  is 
built  upon  a  dome-shaped  hill,  rather  steep,  its  western  base  washed 
by  the  Mediterranean  Sea,  and  presenting  a  fine  appearance  from  the 
sea.  The  present  harbor,  however,  is  very  poor,  and  even  dangerous ; 
so  much  so,  that  in  stormy  weather  the  regular  steamers  of  this 
coast  are  compelled  to  pass  by,  much  to  the  disappointment  of  pas- 
sengers, who  are  carried  on  to  Beyrout  or  Alexandria.  An  instance 
of  this  sort  occurred  during  my  first  week  in  Beyrout.  The  city  is 
surrounded  by  a  wall  and  ditch,  scientifically  constructed  and  well 
fortified. 

Having  a  letter  to  the  Governor  (Kaimakam)  of  Joppa,  Noured- 
din  Effendi.  from  Brother  E.  T.  Rogers,  Master  of  Lebanon  Lodge,  at 
Beyrout,  I  made  haste  to  call  upon  that  official,  and  was  at  once  hon- 
ored with  his  fraternal  confidence.  This  gentleman  is  a  Mason  of  some 
fifteen  or  twenty  years'  standing,  initiated,  as  his  diploma  shows,  in  a 
French  lodge  on  the  Island  of  Corfu,  but  now  a  member  of  Lodge 
Amitie  Clemente,  Paris,  France.  He  is  about  forty-five  years  of  age, 
and  a  bachelor.  He  favored  me  with  an  invitation  to  dine  with  him, 
which  I  readily  accepted.  I  found  him  anxious  for  the  extension  of 
the  Masonic  craft  in  Syria  and  Palestine ;  but,  like  all  other  Masons 
I  have  encountered  here,  he  is  but  poorly  posted  as  to  the  ways  and 
means  of  Masonic  dissemination.  In  fact,  he  has  in  his  possession  the 
amplest  authority  from  the  Grand  Orient  of  France,  in  the  form  of  a 
commission  some  ten  or  twelve  years  old,  but  never  used,  to  establish 


MASONIC   USE   OF   JOPPA. 

lodges,  confer  degrees,  etc. ;  and  it  was  one  of  my  privileges  tc 
instruct  the  good  brother  how  to  proceed  in  its  use.  The  results,  I 
trust,  will  some  day  be  visible  in  the  establishment  of  lodges  either 
here  or  elsewhere. 

The  American  colony  near  Joppa,  of  which  so  much  has  been 
said  in  the  papers  the  past  two  years,  is  entirely  broken  up.  Four  of 
the  colonists  who  were  there  on  my  arrival  in  May,  I  found  to  be 
members  of  the  Masonic  order,  viz.,  Brother  G.  J.  Adams,  who  is 
the  Bishop  and  projector  of  the  colony,  and  Brothers  George  W. 
Toombs,  Rolla  Floyd,  and  Joshua  Walker.  This  rendered  my 
acquaintance  with  them  highly  agreeable.  Beside  these  five  gen- 
tlemen I  found  no  Freemasons  in  Joppa. 

In  accordance  with  my  custom  elsewhere,  I  selected  an  appropriate 
spot  at  the  southwestern  angle  of  the  city,  and  chiseled  the  Square 
and  Compass  as  a  token  of  the  Masonic  identification  of  Joppa.  In 
doing  so,  I  dedicated  it  to  the  following  group  of  good  Masons,  viz., 
William  B.  Hubbard,  G.  H.  C.  Melody,  E.  J.  Carr,  W.  W.  Storey, 
Augustus  Rowe,  Andres  Cassard,  William  Manby,  E.  W.  H.  Ellis, 
Edward  Brewer,  and  Tal.  P.  Shafner. 

Numerous  lodges  are  named  from  this  locality,  such  as  No.  167, 
Kentucky;  152,  Georgia;  201,  New  York;  65,  Texas;  136,  Iowa;  223, 
England,  etc.  The  Plain  of  Sharon,  on  the  verge  of  which  the  city 
stands,  is  also  perpetuated  in  lodge  nomenclature  by  Lodge  No.  95, 
Texas;  116,  Wisconsin;  97,  Canada;  250,  Pennsylvania,  etc.  The 
name  of  the  country  itself,  Palestine,  on  which  I  am  now  entering 
— for  thus  far  my  explorations  have  been  in  Syria,  of  which  Pales- 
tine is  the  southern  extremity — has  been  still  more  frequently  used 
in  this  way,  as  in  Lodge  No.  158,  Ohio;  120,  North  Carolina;  208, 
Missouri;  204,  New  York;  31,  Texas;  114,  Wisconsin;  143,  Iowa; 
109,  Arkansas,  etc.  The  future  visitor  to  this  ancient  port  will  find 
his  stay  made  the  more  agreeable  the  more  the  spirit  of  our  fraternity 
pervades  it 

Traces  of  an  ancient  harbor  are  detected  on  the  north  and  east 
sides  of  Joppa,  which  gave  the  city,  in  Solomonic  times,  the  best  pro- 
tected harbor  on  the  coast.  Lieutenant  Lynch,  who  was  here  about 
twenty  years  ago,  was  sanguine  as  to  the  feasibility  of  reopening  this 
roadstead,  now  choked  with  sand,  and  giving  a  splendid  revival  to 
the  old  city.  This  is  much  to  be  desired.  Traces  of  the  ancient 
Roman  road  from  Joppa  to  Jerusalem  are  plainly  identified ;  and,  as  the 
Romans  were  the  best  road-builders  in  the  world,  it  is  most  likely  that 


THE   STEEP   HILL   AT   JOPPA.  255 

the  original  causeway  made  by  Hiram's  men,  for  the  transportation  of 
the  almost  incalculable  supply  of  materials  required  for  the  Temple, 
ran  over  the  same  ground.  While  this  cannot  yet  be  proven,  I  am  sat- 
isfied, as  the  result  of  all  my  observations,  that  such  was  the  fact. 
The  distance  between  the  two  cities,  on  a  straight  line,  is  about 
twenty-five  miles,  but  as  the  road  runs,  thirty-five  miles.  After 
running  about  twelve  miles,  it  mounts  to  a  hilly  region,  as  will  be 
seen  by  recalling  the  fact  that  Jerusalem  stands  2,600  feet  above 
Joppa.  The  Pasha  of  Jerusalem,  ISTazif  Pasha,  has  opened  a  turn 
pike- way  recently,  connecting  the  two  cities. 

It  is  perhaps  only  an  accidental  circumstance,  yet  it  struck  me 
with  some  force,  that  in  no  town  in  Palestine  have  I  seen  so  many 
and  such  ingenious  combinations  of  arches  as  in  Joppa.  I  copied  in 
my  note-book  quite  a  number  of  them  that  particularly  attracted  my 
eye.  The  builders  in  our  country,  who  seem  to  be  restricted  to  a 
few  simple  forms  of  arches,  might  take  lessons  from  these  Arab 
builders.  A  few  palm-trees  grow  here  and  there  among  the  build- 
ings, and  in  the  suburbs  of  Joppa. 

I  remarked  before  that  the  hill  at  Joppa  is  quite  steep.  A  friend, 
with  myself,  "tried  our  hands"  at  assisting  each  other  to  climb  it; 
this,  however,  was  more  for  speculative  purposes  than  practical  ones. 

A  sketch  of  my  first  day  in  Joppa  is  given  from  my  note-book.  I 
landed  at  the  ancient  port  of  Joppa,  now  called  Jaffa  (sometimes 
Yaffa),  early  on  the  morning  of  May  1.  It  is  truly  a  charming  day 
The  sea  is  only  slightly  agitated,  not  more  so,  indeed,  than  I  am  at 
the  thought  of  at  last  treading  the  shores  so  renowned.  It  was  hard, 
indeed,  to  conceive  that  this  harbor,  so  restricted  now  in  its  marine 
accommodations,  having  only  a  few  fishing  vessels  or  small  craft  en- 
gaged in  the  orange-trade,  was  once  the  great  port  of  the  Jewish 
kingdom — their  only  harbor.  It  was  difficult  to  recall  the  former 
glories  of  Joppa  under  the  reigns  of  David  and  Solomon,  when  the 
commercial  alliance  with  Tyre  filled  this  bay  with  vessels,  and  brought 
the  products  of  the  whole  earth  to  the  foot  of  this  hill.  Yet  the 
place  is  a  sightly  one  for  all  that,  and  gratified  my  curiosity  quite  as 
much  as  I  had  reason  to  anticipate.  The  town  covers  the  sea-end 
of  a  promontory  that  juts  out  for  half  a  mile  into  the  water,  leaving  a 
small  bay  upon  each  side.  The  hill  being  steep,  the  houses  are  built 
one  above  the  other,  and  the  narrow  streets  rise  from  the  shore  by 
broad  stone  steps,  adapted  only  to  camels,  donkeys,  and  the  native 
horses,  who,  I  believe,  could  climb  a  ladder  if  required. 


256  THE  HOWADJI   LANDING. 

Approaching  the  shore,  I  called  to  mind  all  the  Masonic  and 
Scriptnral  references  to  Joppa,  those  of  Solomon's  time,  of  Jonah,  etc., 
being  prominent.  As  the  boatmen  forced  their  way  through  the 
reef  of  rocks  that  runs  parallel  to  the  shore,  I  observed  a  granite  pillar 
upright  upon  a  rude,  stony  ledge,  used  now  for  fastening  the  small 
craft  of  the  port,  but  once,  doubtless,  a  part  of  the  architectural 
glories  of  ancient  Joppa.  At  this  point  of  my  entrance  a  difference 
arose  between  the  chief  boatman  and  myself  as  to  the  rate  of  com- 
pensation for  bringing  one  person  from  the  ship.  Had  I  been  suffi- 
ciently acquainted  with  Arabic  to  understand  their  loud  and  boister- 
ous arguments,  it  is  possible  that  I  should  have  paid  their  price,  viz., 
seventy  cents.  As  it  was,  I  handed  them  twelve  cents,  turning  a 
deaf  ear  to  their  clamor.  I  fear  that  my  indifference  left  a  bad  im- 
pression upon  those  "  sea-faring  men,"  but  I  couldn't  help  that.  "  Where 
ignorance  is  bliss  'tis  folly  to  be  wise."  I  have  long  since  learned 
that  your  only  way,  in  this  country,  is  to  give  what  you  think  is 
right,  and  turn  contemptuously  away  from  all  protestations.  One 
thing  you  may  be  sure  of,  an  Arab  will  never  refuse  to  take  youi 
money,  or  be  a  bit  the  less  civil  when  he  meets  you  again. 

But  oh,  how  the  Joppanese  bleed  the  general  traveller !  Some 
tourists  are  so  flush  of  money  that  they  don't  seem  to  care  what  they 
give.  Some  become  excited  by  the  loud  clamor  of  the  demand,  and 
give  a  dollar  when  they  mean  a  shilling.  Some  are  perpetually 
ignorant  of  the  denomination  of  current  coins.  Many  fail  to  provide 
themselves  with  small  change,  and  not  until  they  have  spent  a  good 
many  dollars  in  backsheesh  do  they  discover  that  plenty  of  half- 
piastre  pieces  (two  cents)  will  go  just  as  far  and  be  as  thankfully 
received  in  this  way  as  francs  (twenty  cents)  or  shillings  (twenty- 
five  cents).  There  is  a  class  of  tourists  here  whose  extravagant  and 
reckless  profusion  in  money  matters  should  be  universally  reprobated. 
Never  having  earned  their  own  support,  and  being  totally  indifferent 
as  to  expenditures,  they  corrupt  the  whole  body  of  the  people  with 
their  lavishness,  and  so  become  a  plague  to  all  "  who  come  this  way 
after  them." 

As  I  reached  the  shote  a  host  of  arms  were  extended  to  steady  me, 
or  catch  me  in  case  I  should  fall.  One  broad-backed  fellow  turned 
his  shoulders  to  me,  and  loudly  invited  me  to  ride  ashore  on 
nature's  own  saddle.  But,  not  recognizing  any  Freemasons  among 
them,  taking  my  overcoat  on  one  arm,  and  slinging  my  little  wallet 
around  my  neck,  I  took  a  position  on  the  bow  of  the  boat, 


NOUREDDIN    EFFENDI, 
Governor  of   Joppa,  1868. 


17 


THE   QOVERNOB   OF   JOPPA. 

watching  my  opportunity,  as  the  last  wave  receded,  sprang  ashore, 
and  so  landed  at  the  port  of  Joppa,  my  heavier  baggage  being  brought 
by  an  attendant 

Landed  at  Joppa.  No  ships  here  bound  for  Ethiopia.  Those  five 
large  vessels  yonder  are  British  war-ships.  Those  ten  little  smacks 
are  only  used  to  skim  the  coast  There  are  no  Mark  Masters  ready 
to  assist  me  up  the  hill.  So  through  the  crowd  of  screaming,  yelling, 
blaspheming  boatmen,  and  hotel-runners,  and  beggars,  and  soldiers, 
and  thieves,  and  idlers  of  Joppa,  I  force  my  way  up,  and  follow  my 
guide  to  the  English  hotel ;  past  a  row  of  kneeling  camels ;  past 
a  row  of  water-carriers,  filling  their  goat-skins  from  the  fountains 
near  the  shore ;  under  the  bewildering  succession  of  arches  which 
make  Joppa,  more  than  any  town  I  have  visited,  the  proper  establish- 
ment for  the  Royal  Arch;  past  a  miserably  deformed  beggar,  sitting 
by  the  roadside,  and  asking  and  getting  alms,  as  his  predecessors  in 
all  ages  have  done  here,  and  so  on  to  the  Locanda,  or  hotel  already 
named,  kept  by  Messrs.  Blatner. 

As  soon  as  I  had  taken  refreshments,  consisting  of  coffee  and 
bread,  which  is  all  you  get  here  till  noon,  I  procured  a  guide,  and 
went  out  to  the  American  colony,  about  half  a  mile  from  the  wall  of 
the  town,  on  the  north  side.  Bro.  Geo.  W.  Toombs,  formerly  of 
Illinois,  had  been  lying  quite  low  with  Syrian  fever,  but  was  able  to 
converse  with  me.  I  was  much  impressed  with  the  honesty  and  sin- 
cerity of  Bro.  Floyd,  who  offered  me,  both  in  his  own  person  and 
through  his  excellent  wife,  the  hospitalities  of  his  house,  as  he  had 
done,  several  weeks  before,  to  my  associate.  The  Bishop,  Bro.  Adams, 
was  likewise  extremely  kind  to  me,  and  labored  to  make  my  stay  at 
Joppa  agreeable.  The  manner  of  Bro.  Toombs,  though  lying  in  his 
bed  extremely  ill,  was  most  gentlemanly,  friendly,  and  accommodating. 

Next  I  called  on  the  Governor,  at  his  Serai,  or  court  of  justice, 
surrounded  by  a  crowd  of  litigants.  I  found  his  Excellency  to  be  a 
most  gentlemanly  and  agreeable  person,  small,  active,  with  keen  eye 
And  sharp  features,  voice  loud  and  quick,  and  full  of  Masonic  fire. 
In  the  Scotch  Rite  (Ancient  and  Accepted),  he  has  advanced  to  the 
twenty-ninth  degree,  Chevalier  de  Soleil,  or  Knight  of  the  Sun.  His 
name,  Noureddin,  is  pronounced  with  full  stress  upon  the  last  sylla- 
ble, deene,  and  his  official  title  is  that  of  Kaimakam,  or  Governor.  In 
•official  parlance,  he  is  addressed  as  his  Excellency  the  Effendi. 

Noureddin  being  a  bachelor,  lives  in  military  style,  his  family 
insisting  of  his  staff  and  male  servants  only.  Besides  the  official 


NEED   OF   A    LODGE.  259 

language,  which  is  Turkish,  he  speaks  French  fluently,  and  the 
Arabic.  I  was  able  to  communicate  with  him  only  through  an 
interpreter,  M.  Serapion  Murad,  Chancellor  of  the  Prussian  Consu- 
late at  Joppa,  kindly  doing  the  duties  of  interpreter  for  me,  and  a 
little  French,  which  I  mustered  up  for  the  occasion.  I  have  had  so 
much  experience  in  this  country,  talking  to  the  people  of  all  nationali- 
ties, through  interpreters,  that  the  awkwardness  of  such  intercourse 
has  been  mainly  overcome,  and  I  enjoyed  this  meeting  with  the  Gov- 
ernor exceedingly.  It  was  gratifying,  too,  to  see  that  the  object  1 
had  in  view,  in  this  conference,  was  one  that  had  already  occupied 
his  Excellency's  attention,  viz.,  the  establishment  of  a  lodge  at  this 
place.  The  four  American  brethren  of  the  colony  are  also  warmly 
m  favor  of  this  project.  I  took  my  leave,  having  been  invited  to 
dine  with  his  Excellency  at  seven  o'clock,  and  promising  to  have  the 
petition  for  the  establishment  of  a  lodge  ready  at  that  hour. 

In  drafting  the  petition  to  the  Grand  Orient  of  France,  I  labored 
under  the  difficulty  of  not  possessing  sufficient  familiarity  with  the 
Constitution  and  Kules  of  Order  of  that  body.  I  knew  there  was 
some  difference  between  the  forms  of  procedure  in  the  Grand  Orient 
of  France  and  the  various  Grand  Lodges  with  which  I  am  acquaint- 
ed. So  I  ventured  on  an  original  plan  of  my  own.  I  wrote  a  lettei 
as  coming  only  from  myself,  setting  forth  the  following  facts,  that 
there  is  only  one  lodge  in  this  country  (the  one  at  Beyrout  working 
under  the  Grand  Lodge  of  Scotland),  although  the  number  of  Free- 
masons resident  in  various  towns  is  large;  that  at  this  place  (Joppa) 
there  are  five  resident  Masons — I  specified  their  names — and  testified 
chat  these  brethren  are  ardently  desirous  of  establishing  a  lodge  here, 
believing  that  many  initiates  would  promptly  be  secured,  and  those  of 
the  best  quality,  thus  advancing  the  general  interest  of  Freemasonry 
and  the  cause  of  universal  benevolence  and  morality.  Finally  I  sug- 
gested, on  behalf  of  the  seven  brethren  whose  names  I  had  given,  that 
his  Excellency  Noureddin  Effendi  be  nominated  Deputy,  or  Provin- 
cial Grand  Master  of  Syria,  under  the  Constitution  of  the  Grand  Orient 
of  France,  with  the  amplest  powers  that  such  a  patent  embraces, 
with  special  authority  to  establish  the  Lodge  Jerusalem  and  Jaffa, 
empowered  to  work '  at  either  place  at  its  own  convenience.  This 
paper  being  carefully  copied,  was  forwarded  to  the  Grand  Secretary 
at  Paris,  an  answer  being  expected  within  a  month.  I  may  say  here, 
however,  that  the  proposal  was  declined,  on  the  ground  that  the 
petitioners  (except  his  Excellency)  were  not  French  Masons  1 


200  ORANGE  ORCHARDS 

In  this  country  you  don't  get  breakfast  till  high  12.  How  I  have 
continued  thus  far  to  avoid  a  horrible  death  by  starvation,  1  can 
scarcely  tell ;  but  here  at  Joppa,  you  can  eat  oranges,  for  which  this 
vicinity  is  so  famous.  They  are  admittedly  the  largest  and  the  best 
in  the  world,  some  of  the  picked  specimens  more  resembling  pump- 
kins than  fruit.  Usually  they  are  seedless,  particularly  the  giants. 
They  are  of  course  very  cheap ;  for  half  a  piastre  (two  cents)  you 
can  get  as  many  as  you  can  eat ;  for  a  whole  piastre,  as  many  as  you 
can  carry  away.  They  constitute  a  very  large  part  of  the  trade  of 
vthis  port,  being  sent  as  far  as  Constantinople,  and  in  every  direction 
through  the  country.  No  one  who  has  observed  the  peculiar  bas- 
kets used  for  transporting  the  Joppa  orange  will  forget  them,  the 
quantity  carried  by  a  donkey  being  simply,  if  the  donkey  only  knew 
it,  preposterous.  At  this  season  the  orange-gardens  or  orchards  are 
at  their  prettiest,  ripe  fruit,  green  fruit,  immature  fruit,  blossoms, 
buds,  and  leaves,  all  growing  good-naturedly  together  upon  the  same 
tree  and  same  bough.  The  flowers  exhale  the  most  delicious  per- 
fume ;  the  tree  itself  is  a  model  of  beauty ;  while  the  sight  of  the 
large  yellow  fruit  sets  off  with  equal  grace  the  bright  green  of  the 
leaves  and  the  pure  white  of  the  blossoms.  Strange  that  the  orange 
is  not  once  named  in  the  Bible.  Is  it  not  most  probable  that  by  the 
term  "apple"1  in  Scripture  the  orange  is  meant?  I  like  to  believe 
it,  and  to  imagine  that,  just  as  the  boys  and  other  orange-venders 
here  hand  you  the  tempting  fruit  all  day,  and  urge  you  to  purchase 
and  eat,  so  they  did  to  the  swarthy  Phoanicians  who  were  drawing 
the  heavy  cedar-trees  up  this  hill,  and  across  yonder  sandy  plain,  and 
to  the  top  of  those  heights  that  loom  up  so  grandly  in  the  eastward ; 
and  that  those  faithful  craftsmen  had  their  thirst  assuaged  by  oranges, 
and  rested  their  limbs  at  night  under  the  dense,  foliage  of  the  orange- 
orchards.  If  so,  they  were  well  accustomed  to  the  fruit  before  they 
came  to  Joppa ;  for  I  believe  the  oranges  that  I  saw  near  Sidon,  two 
weeks  ago,  are  only  second  in  size  and  value  to  these  at  Joppa. 

As  I  said,  breakfast  at  high  12  is  an  attempt  upon  the  life  of  a 
human  being,  and  I  attribute  my  escape  from  starvation  only  to  the 
sustenance  afforded  by  the  Joppa  oranges.  "When  at  last  the  break- 
fast has  come— but  let  me  describe  it.  First,  two  of  the  fish  from 
this  harbor,  sweet  and  delicious  specimens  of  the  finny  tribe  whose 
forefathers  did  so  much  to  strengthen  our  Masonic  forefathers,  as 
they  came  floating  down  this  way  on  rafts  from  the  Masonic  Bay,  a 
hundred  and  fifty  miles  above  here.  I  ate  them  both.  Next,  a  stewed 


EFFEXDI. 

thicken,  stewed  to  rags,  as  is  the  custom  of  the  country;  but  by 
judicious  use  of  sweet  olive-oil  in  place  of  butter,  well  flavored  and 
toothsome,  I  ate  it  all.  Then  a  plate  of  cold  mutton,  cut  in  slices. 
My  eyes  being  indifferent,  I  mount  my  glasses  now  to  give  it  a  name, 
and  easily  recognizing  it,  I  ate  it  all.  Next  some  fried  mutton,  rather 
stringy  and  hard ;  however,  I  ate  it  also.  Now  comes  a  plate  of 
oranges,  and  a  cup  of  coffee ;  a  woman's  thimble  is  gigantic  in  size 
compared  with  it.  This  is  my  breakfast.  Picking  my  teeth,  I  looked 
out  at  that  fine  palm-tree  yonder,  my  favorite  tree  of  all  the  trees 
in  the  world.  They  tell  me  the  palm  bears  its  fruit  (the  date) 
abundantly  in  the  southern  section  of  Palestine,  which  is  more  than 
it  does  about  Beyrout.  There  is  a  considerable  number  of  palm-trees 
in  this  vicinity,  while  the  pomegranate,  so  famous  in  Masonic  sym- 
bology,  is  even  more  so.  I  secured  ample  specimens  of  the  wood  of 
both  these  trees. 

Having  spent  the  afternoon  in  a  manner  suitable  to  my  mission, 
I  sallied  forth  at  the  proper  hour  to  fill  my  appointment  with  his 
Excellency  Brother  Noureddin  Effendi,  between  whom  and  myself 
Freemasonry  has  already  established  an  equality  which  no  other 
society  can  accomplish.  Brother  Adams  joined  us  in  the  party,  and 
there  were  present  Monsieur  Serapion  Murad,  already  named,  to- 
gether with  half  a  dozen  clerks  and  secretaries  of  the  Governor.  I 
showed  his  Excellency  my  diploma  of  the  thirty-second  grade,  Scottish 
Rite.  I  had  also  my  diploma  from  my  lodge,  Fortitude  No.  47,  La 
Grange,  Ky.,  prepared  expressly  for  this  journey,  and  my  firman  from 
the  Sultan.  Upon  his  own  part,  the  Kaimakam  showed  me  written  evi- 
dence of  his  membership  in  various  lodges,  and  we  passed  esoterical 
evidences  satisfactory  to  both.  Two  hours  passed  by  before  dinner 
was  announced,  which  time  was  spent  in  conversation  of  a  varied 
and  pleasing  character.  His  Excellency  is  one  of  the  best  of  com- 
panions, and  Brother  Adams  has  the  art  agreable,  in  perfection. 
Monsieur  Serapion  Murad  is  one  of  a  thousand  in  making  his  friends 
happy,  while  I  found  myself  both  in  the  mood  conversational  and 
musical.  Cigarettes  and  narghilehs  were  offered  abundantly.  The 
latter  is  the  celebrated  water-pipe,  through  which,  when  the  fumes 
of  this  mild  Turkish  tobacco  have  passed,  you  can't  tell  that  you 
are  smoking  anything.  It  is  this  which,  according  to  tradition, 
King  Solomon  used  while  inducting  the  Queen  of  Sheba  into  the 
art  of  using  tobacco.  The  only  drawback  connected  with  its  use  is 
the  vast  expenditure  of  muscular  energy  requisite  in  drawing  smoke 


262  ORIENTAL  ODDITIES. 

through  it.  The  first  time  you  attempt  to  use  one  you  become  black 
in  the  face  from  the  tremendous  effort,  and  present  an  alarming 
appearance.  I  dislike  the  roar  of  water  which  it  makes,  for  I  always 
imagine  it  is  raining  torrents  outside  when  I  hear  it  But  I  digress, 
My  mind  is  exercised  at  Joppa  in  observing  the  queer  points  of 
contrast  between  the  people  of  the  East  and  the  West  Of  these  I 
note  eleven,  viz. : 

1.  We  write  and  read  from  left  to  right;  they  from  right  to  left 

2.  We  uncover  the  head  at  worship,  and  keep  our  feet  covered ;  they 
cover  the  head  and  bare  the  feet 

3.  We  shave  the  face  but  not  the  head ;  they  shave  the  head  but 
not  the  face. 

4.  We  draw  the  razor  towards  us;  they  push  the  razor  from  them. 

5.  We  push  the  saw  from  us  in  sawing ;  they  draw  the  saw  towards 
them. 

6.  We  chew  and  snuff  tobacco  as  well  as  smoke ;  they  use  it  only 
in  fumigation. 

7.  We  stand  at  reaping,   preaching,  etc. ;    they  sit  at  all   such 
labors. 

8.  We  distinguish  carefully  the  clothing  of  the  two  sexes,  and  the 
law  (and  the  Bible)  forbid  similarity ;  they  make  little  or  no  dis- 
tinction. 

9.  We  sleep  in  the  house-rooms ;  they  on  the  house-tops. 

10.  We  drink   alcoholic  liquors ;    they  religiously  abstain  from 
such. 

11.  We  rejoice  in  active  life ;  they  are  strictly  sedentary.    A  maxim 
is  found  among  them  like  this :  "  Never  walk  when  you  can  ride ; 
never  stand  when  you  can  sit ;  never  sit  when  you  can  lie ! " 

A  seashore  ramble  of  several  hours  was  a  charming  episode  in 
my  visit  to  Joppa.  The  beach  is  lined  with  shells,  especially  the 
escalop,  already  named.  Ever  since  I  was  made  a  Knight  Templar, 
in  1850,  I  have  desired  to  see  the  real  escalop  (scalop,  eschalop) 
thell  of  the  Crusaders.  Here  they  are  in  millions.  To  wear  them 
around  the  hat,  as  Scott  described  the  Templar  in  Ivanhoe,  implied 
that  the  wearer  had  made  a  long  voyage  by  sea,  particularly  in  attend- 
ance on  holy  wars.  This  shell,  for  some  reason,  was  the  emblem  of 
St  James,  the  brother  of  Jesus,  who  is  always  drawn  in  the  guise  of 
a  pilgrim  ;  and  it  is  largely  seen  in  the  churches  dedicated  to  him. 
This  shell  is  of  the  family  Ostraadce,  another  name  for  Pectinidce. 
The  regular  "  pilgrim's  shell"  now  in  my  hand  is  Pectin  Jacobceus 


TELEGRAPH   POLES.  268 

or  that  of  St.  James.    Sometimes  it  grows  four  or  five  inches  broad, 
but  they  are  rarely  much  over  one  inch. 

The  steady  movement  of  the  tides  upon  this  beach,  along  which  I 
have  wandered  already  so  often,  never  ceases  to  attract  my  attention. 
Homer  describes  it  just  as  I  should  to-day,  only  so  much 
better : 

As  when  the  ocean-billows,  wave  on  wave, 
Are  pushed  along  to  the  resounding  shore 
Before  the  westward  wind,  and  first  the  surge 
Uplifts  itself,  and  then  against  the  land 
Dashes  and  roars,  and  round  the  headland  peak 
Tosses  on  high  and  spouts  its  foam  afar. — Iliad. 

The  telegraph  poles,  extending  in  a  receding  line  southward  as  far 
as  the  eye  can  reach,  give  me  a  homesick  throb  or  two.  Of  tele- 
graph lines  in  1871,  there  were  684,000  miles  in  use  throughout  the 
world,  30,000  of  which  are  of  submarine  cable.  The  lines  are 
extending  at  the  rate  of  100,000  miles  per  annum.  But  for  the 
dreadful  expense  (nearly  $100),  I  would  send  a  message  of  twenty 
words  to  the  dear  one  who  keeps  the  household  lamp  trimmed  and 
burning,  awaiting  my  return. 

I  visited  the  site  of  Bonaparte's  daring  and  successful  assault  upon 
the  city.  Of  the  thousands  who  fell  here,  it  may  be  said  there  is 

Not  a  time-wasted  cross,  not  a  mouldering  stone 

To  mark  the  lone  scene  of  their  shame  or  their  pride ; 

Not  a  grass-covered  mound  tells  the  traveller  lone 
Where  thousands  lay  down  in  their  anguish  and  died. 

In  the  groves  and  orchards  surrounding  the  city  I  noted  the  broad 
flagging  leaf  of  the  plantain,  the  first  I  had  ever  seen.  Afterwards  I 
found  them  in  Egypt  much  larger.  The  fruit  is  shaped  like  cucum- 
bers in  clusters.  According  to  Mohammed's  theory,  this  was  the 
forbidden  fruit  of  Adam  and  Eve,  and  the  large,  peculiarly  shaped 
leaves  were  those  of  which  our  first  parents  constructed  their  aprons. 
Who  knows  ?  They  are  big  enough  to  cover  the  whole  body. 

But  what  are  these  objects  slowly  approaching  me,  dressed  in  the 
habiliments  of  the  grave,  enveloped  in  the  white  sheet,  and  recalling 
ghostly  images  of  youthful  terror  ?  The  women  of  Joppa,  returning 
from  their  daily  visit  to  the  cemetery. 

Observing  an  exchange  of  salutes  between  two  war-ships,  I  am 
reminded  of  the  piece  of  naval  etiquette,  that  the  ship  answering 
returns  fewer  guns  than  the  one  that  gives  the  hailing  sign. 

In  the  bazaars  of  Joppa  the  women  do  most  of  the  "  truck  "  busi- 


264  SIGHTS,  SOUNDS,    A*TD   SMELLS. 

ness,  selling  charcoal,  parsley,  snails,  eggs,  fruits,  vegetables,  milk, 
etc.  These  are  women  of  the  Fellahin  Arabs — the  village  Arabs,  as 
distinguished  from  Bedouin  or  wandering  Arabs.  They  go  unveiled, 
which  the  Turkish  women  never  do.  In  the  morning  the  women 
bring  their  truck  in  baskets  borne  on  heads  and  shoulders,  while  the 
man  rides  his  donkey  pleasantly,  and  smokes.  Poor  as  Job's  turkey 
though  such  a  woman  may  be,  she  has  glass  rings,  bracelets,  and 
strings  of  beads  in  killing  abundance,  equal  to  Mother  Rebecca 
herself,  only  of  cheaper  material.  So,  too,  with  her  child.  Living  in 
a  mud-hut,  on  bread  and  water,  in  a  chronic  state  of  starvation, 
the  child's  head  is  decorated  with  gold  and  silver  coins  which  the 
law  of  debt  may  not  impound  or  the  law  of  usage  sell.  The  mother's 
dross  is  a  blue  cotton  gown,  open  at  the  breast,  but  the  sleeves  hang 
to  the  ground,  and  she  has  the  Oriental  girdle  round  her  waist 
When  she  moves  you  know  it  by  the  tinkling  of  that  lot  of  glass 
trumpery  which  hangs  around  her. 

The  Oriental  method  of  carrying  water,  as  I  see  it  here,  is  perpetu- 
ated in  heraldry.  The  yoke,  with  two  leather  water-pouches  depending 
upon  ii,  is  particularly  the  device  of  the  family  De  Ros.  of  England, — 
"gules,  three  water-budgets  argent"  as  it  is  technically  termed, 
referring  to  the  method  adopted  by  the  Crusaders  for  carrying  water 
through  the  desert.  An  English  Baron  somebody  or  other  has  also 
troi&  bouts  d'eau  in  his  heraldic  device. 

In  the  manufacture  of  soap,  of  which,  to  their  credit,  the  people  of 
Joppa  make  a  great  deal  and  make  it  good  (no  auction-soap  here), 
they  use  ashes,  lime,  gall-nuts,  olive-oil,  and  salt.  It  is  always  made 
hard,  cast  in  blocks,  and,  when  prepared  for  shipment,  sewed  in 
sacks.  The  vast  olive  product  of  this  country  affords  considerable 
commerce  in  soap.  The  enormous  heaps  of  bleached  ashes  near 
Joppa  and  Jerusalem  have  attracted  the  eyes  of  travellers  for  cen- 
turies. 

Laughing,  through  the  open  door  of  a  barber's  shop,  at  the  sight 
of  a  man  bending  over  a  basin  in  an  attitude  of  sea-sickness,  and 
having  his  head  shaved.  A  Moslem  only  nourishes  a  lock  of  hair  on 
the  crown  of  his  head,  like  a  Sioux  Indian's  scalp-lock.  It  is  strictly 
for  religious  (traditional)  purposes. 

I  saw  an  old  man,  in  a  church  here,  kneeling  and  devoutly  praying 
before  the  altar.  His  beard  was  long,  flowing,  and  white  as  that  of  old 
Brother  Stillman  Blanchard,  of  happy  memory.  His  countenance  was 
pale  and  meagre,  his  skin  was  withered,  his  eyes  sunk  deep  in  his  head 


WINE   OF   HEBRON.  265 

I  studied  a  party  of  desert  Bedouins  here,  just  up  from  beyond 
Gaza  on  some  business  with  the  government.  They  were  evidently 
unaccustomed  to  civilized  scenes.  Their  eyes  rolled  over  me  like 
those  of  wild  beasts  in  a  cage.  They  were  indeed  wild  and  ferocious 
in  appearance  as  so  many  beasts.  Their  visages  were  dark  red — al- 
most copper-colored.  The  one  who  answered  my  questions  had  a 
voice  like  that  of  a  bird  of  evil  omen.  Talking  to  one  another, 
they  sent  out  volleys  of  Arabic  gutturals  rattling  like  hailstones. 

The  large  yellow  snails  sold  in  the  bazaars  form  a  favorite  article 
of  diet  through  a  considerable  part  of  France  as  well  as  Palestine, 
They  are  said  to  be  very  palatable.  I  did  not  try  them. 

Of  the  lepers,  whom  I  saw  for  the  first  time  in  Joppa,  I  will  speak 
under  another  head.  They  are  numerous  here,  and  appeal  to  youi 
charity  both  by  the  eye  and  ear — yes,  and  by  a  third  sense  equally 
urgent. 

The  sycamore- tree,  so  called  in  Scripture,  is  quite  a  conspicuous 
object  around  Joppa.  But  it  is  not  at  all  the  tree  Cowper  describes 
when  he  says : 

"The  sycamore,  capricious  in  attire, 
Now  green,  now  tawdry,  and,  ere  autumn  yet 
Have  changed  the  woods,  in  scarlet  honor  brought." 

In  memory  of  the  vine-traditions  of  the  hills  of  Judah,  I  took,  at 
dinner  to-day,  a  glass  of  the  wine  of  Hebron,  and  ate  heartily  of  its 
raisins  and  olives.  In  Christ's  day  wine  abounded  in  Palestine,  and 
was  the  drink  of  the  people,  as  it  is  now  in  Europe.  Hebron  wine  is 
a  bright  wine,  resembling  the  amber  Muscat.  It  has  a  slightly 
astringent  taste,  and  is  said  to  be  a  remedy  in  bilious  complaints. 
The  raisins  are  not  so  large  and  thin-skinned  as  the  Malaga  box- 
raisins,  and  the  seeds  are  larger ;  yet  the  flavor  is  good.  The  dibs,  or 
syrup  made  from  the  raisins,  often  from  the  carob-pods,  is  equal  to 
the  finest  sugar-house  syrups  of  our  country.  Some  writers  think 
this  the  syrup  referred  to  in  many  passages  of  Holy  Scripture,  in 
which  the  term  honey  is  employed. 

It  will  be  expected  that  I  say  something  more  in  detail  of  the 
American  Colony,  whose  setting-out  in  1866  and  misfortunes  in 
1867  filled  the  papers  of  this  country,  and  drove  many  of  us  to  our 
pockets  deeper  than  we  could  well  afford.  About  the  time  1  started 
for  the  Holy  Land  (February,  1868),  the  dailies  were  publishing  this 
morceau  of  news: 


26f,  AMERICAN   COLONY   AT  JOPPA. 

"  The  Maine  Colony  in  Joppa  has  again  been  heard  from.  They 
now  number  twenty-five,  and  are  in  a  state  of  bliss,  in  consequence 
of  the  departure  of  their  leader,  Adams." 

At  Beyrout  and  vicinity,  during  March  and  April,  the  stories  told 
about  Adams  and  his  people  were  incredibly  harsh  ;  and  this  naturally 
created  a  reaction  in  my  own  mind,  so  far,  at  least,  that  I  wrote  to 
Adams,  assuring  him  that  when  I  came  to  Joppa,  he  should  have  a 
fair  showing  as  a  fellow-countryman  and  a  Masonic  brother. 

Rev.  G.  J.  Adams  visited  Palestine  on  a  prospecting  expedition 
in  1865.  His  letter  of  August  10  of  that  year  was  written  from 
Joppa,  that  of  August  14  from  the  "  Land  of  Ephraim,"  that 
of  August  20  from  Jerusalem,  that  of  August  23  from  Bethel. 
In  the  latter  he  made  these  characteristic  explanations :  "  One  hour 
before  sunset  I  began  the  ascent  of  the  Hill  of  Hope  (!)  at  Bethel, 
on  which  I  had  built  an  altar  of  twelve  stones  for  the  whole  house 
of  Israel.  There,  with  the  Lord's  host  above  me,  I  prayed  :  Oh  Lord 
God  of  Israel,  thou  great  Jehovah ;  God  of  Abraham,  and  Isaac,  and 
Jacob ;  God  of  the  Prophets ;  thou  great  I  AM.  Have  mercy  upon 
these  thy  servants  who  have  come  this  long  journey  to  prepare  this 
work,  and  forgive  our  sins  and  purify  our  hearts.  In  thy  presence, 
in  the  presence  of  angels,  in  the  presence  of  the  hosts  who  surround 
us,  we  pour  this  oil  upon  this  altar  of  twelve  stones,  to  be  a  witness 
forever  that  we  have  done  as  thou  directed  us.  I  then  filled  a 
bottle  of  water  from  a  well  from  which  the  prophets  and  patriarchs 
had  refreshed  themselves." 

On  my  return  home  I  summed  up  all  I  knew  of  him  and  his  opera- 
tions in  an  article,  of  which  the  following  is  the  substance : 

On  both  my  visits  to  Joppa  (in  May  and  June,  1868),  I  went  out 
to  the  A  dams  Colony  near  that  ancient  city,  about  ten  minutes'  walk, 
and  made  myself  inquisitive  in  regard  to  the  history  of  the  singular 
economico-religious  movement  which  led  to  its  establishment.  As 
four  of  the  colonists  to  whom  I  was  introduced  are  members  of  the 
Masonic  fraternity,  viz.,  Mr.  G.  J.  Adams,  (the  founder  and  Bishop), 
Mr.  Holla  Floyd,  Mr.  Toombs,  and  Mr.  Walker,  there  is  a  propriety  in 
ventilating  the  subject  with  considerable  detail  in  a  Masonic  jour- 
nal, and  1  doubt  not  your  readers  will  think  so. 

The  Joppa  Colony  was  founded  under  the  sole  auspices  of  the 
eccentric  Rev.  G.  J.  Adams,  long  publisher  and  editor  of  religious 
papers  in  New  England ;  a  preacher  of  the  Primitive  Gospel ;  a  sin- 
gularly erratic  man,  social  to  a  degree,  versatile  in  gifts,  fond  of 
pleasure,  and  possessing  quite  a  histrionic  genius.  Indeed,  it  is  averred 


PRELIMINARY    SURVEY. 

that  he  was  formerly  a  play-actor,  but  I  did  not  ask  him  about  that. 
[  remember,  however,  that  the  day  I  left  Joppa  for  Jerusalem  he  was 
announced  to  play  Hamlet  and  some  other  part  upon  the  stage  which 
he  had  erected  in  the  church  edifice  connected  with  his  colony,  and 
he  told  me  that  day  that  he  had  $800  worth  of  theatrical  costumes  in 
his  wardrobe,  at  Joppa. 

Mr.  Adams  must  have  possessed  a  good  deal  of  eloquence  as  a 
preacher,  for  he  went  amongst  the  educated,  moral,  hard-fisted  people 
of  Maine,  and  secured  their  pledges  (and  their  money  too)  to  unite  in 
the  establishment  of  a  colony  in  Palestine  under  his  presidency. 
Fortified  with  these  he  made  a  preliminary  visit  to  that  country 
about  the  year  1865 ;  went  to  Jerusalem ;  went  to  Bethel  (where  he 
set  up  an  altar  of  stone,  and  performed  various  mystical  evolutions 
in  connection  with  it),  and  returned  to  New  England  full  of  confi- 
dence in  the  feasibility  of  the  scheme.  The  Turkish  government 
was  favorable  to  it  (the  Governor  of  Joppa,  Noureddin  Effendi,  par- 
ticularly so) ;  the  land  was  productive,  and  could  be  had  upon  the 
longest  leases  at  a  nominal  price  ;  three  crops  a  year  could  be  made ; 
the  climate  was  salubrious;  fortunes  could  be  made  in  a  few  years, 
etc.,  etc.,  etc.  It  was  the  California  fever  of  1850  over  again. 

Nearly  two  hundred  persons,  men  and  women,  embarked  for  Pales- 
tine upon  the  basis  of  his  statements  alone ;  what  a  man  to  establish 
such  confidence !  As  I  talked  with  him  in  May,  1 868, 1  endeavored 
in  vain  to  detect  the  secret  of  his  strength. 

They  brought  with  them  to  Joppa  all  the  outfit  for  domestic  life 
and  for  agricultural  operations.  Lumber  from  the  hills  of  Maine 
was  brought  in  abundance,  for  Adams  had  correctly  told  them  there 
was  no  timber  in  Palestine.  Furniture  had  been  provided,  for  he  had 
informed  them  that  the  Moslems  used  neither  chair  nor  table.  Food 
for  several  mouths  and  clothing  for  an  indefinite  period  were  not  for- 
gotten. By  the  favor  of  Noureddin  Effendi,  the  custom-duties  were 
all  remitted  by  a  device  of  his  own,  peculiarly  Turkish.*  The  gov- 
ernment afforded  the  colonists  every  favor  they  desired.  The  enter- 
prise began  under  the  most  favorable  auspices.  Why  then  did  it 
fail? 

For  several  reasons.  First.  The  climate.  These  people  from  the 
rocks,  cold  climate,  and  resin-trees  of  Maine  all  got  the  chills  and 
fever  in  Palestine,  just  as  they  would  have  got  it  had  they  removed 
to  Newark,  New  Jersey  ;  or  to  the  banks  of  Skunk  River,  Iowa.  I 
should  have  had  an  attack  myself,  had  I  stayed  on  that  coast  two 
weeks  longer.  No  one  can  be  acclimated  in  Syria  without  it  any 
.more  than  he  can  in  Mississippi  or  Louisiana.  Second.  The  colo- 
nists persisted  in  working  through  the  heat  of  the  day,  wearing  black 
hats,  eating  big  Maine  dinners,  and  doing  things  generally  exactly 

*  It  was  this  :  the  Custom-House  of  Joppa  is  not  under  Noureddin's  control,  there- 
fore he  gave  them  a  permit  to  land  their  effects  on  tJie  beacJi,  but  a  mile  from  the  city 
hf  told  me  this  himself. 


268  FLATTERING   EXPECTATIONS. 

the  opposite  of  the  customs  of  the  natives,  who  have  found  out  ic 
four  thousand  years  how  to  live  healthfully  and  happily  on  the  Plain 
of  Sharon.  Tfiird.  The  government,  of  the  ecclesiastical  form,  with 
a  man  for  Pope  (Adams)  who  could  not  "rule  his  own  spirit,"  He 
was  vain,  conceited,  intemperate,  a  very  poor  business  man,  ignorant 
of  every  principle  of  political  economy,  and  an  inveterate  warrior 
(socially).  He  quarreled  with  everybody ;  quarreled  with  those  whose 
bread  he  was  eating;  quarreled  with  the  American  Consuls,  by  whose 
favor  alone  he  was  kept  from  Oriental  jails;  quarreled  with  the  Turk- 
ish authorities,  who  were  willing  to  stretch  every  principle  of  law  to 
favor  him  ;  quarreled  with  his  own  appointed  Elders  of  his  own  ap- 
pointed church.  He  was  extravagant,  yet  does  not  seem  to  have  got 
anything  for  his  money.  His  sermons  were  vulgar  and  abusive.  His 
theology  was  contradictory,  execrable,  and  absurd.  Without  charging 
him  with  any  positive  crime,  I  must  say  that  I  never  saw  a  man  less 
fitted  to  rule  than  G.  J.  Adams. 

So  the  colony  crumbled  and  went  to  pieces.  A  few  died  ;  the  rest 
returned  as  they  could  to  the  United  States.  "When  I  went  there,  in 
May,  there  were  seven  or  eight  left ;  when  I  was  there  in  June  there 
were  only  two,  viz.,  Brother  and  Mrs.  Rolla  Floyd,  a  most  estimable 
couple. 

Adams  wrote,  October  22,  1867,  that  "the  natives  are  anxious  to 
hire  us.  Our  teams  are  all  engaged.  Our  carpenters  have  employ- 
ment at  wages  that  allow  each  to  save  $5  per  week,  in  gold.  All 
our  mechanics  and  laborers  have  steady  work  and  good  pay.  Our 
wagons  and  carriages  are  engaged  by  the  Pasha  in  building  a  fine 
macadamized  road  from  Joppa  to  Jerusalem,  one  hundred  feet  wide ; 
three  thousand  men  are  employed  upon  it.  We  are  at  peace  with  all 
the  natives,  the  local  officers,  and  the  foreign  Consuls ;  yet  as  a  colony 
we  stand  free  from  every  government  on  earth,  and,  like  Abraham, 
are  strangers  upou  earth.  We  number  now  forty-five,  and  never  since 
we  landed  have  we  been  so  happy  and  contented  as  we  are  now."  The 
colony  experienced  the  fate  of  similar  undertakings.  Some  who 
went  out  were  not  fitted  for  the  toils  and  privations  of  a  pioneer 
effort,  and  all  had  mistaken  views  as  to  a  speedy  realization  of  their 
hopes.  Poverty  and  disappointment,  joined  to  mismanagement,  dis- 
heartened many,  and  they  sought  relief  from  citizens  of  the  United 
States  that  they  might  return  home.  More  money  was  spent  in  get- 
ting  them  back  than  would  have  saved  the  success  of  the  colony. 

Adams  is  in  England  (18G8),  but  what  he  is  doing  there,  or  how  he 
expects  to  be  supported,  I  do  not  know.    He  intimated  to  me  that  he 
expected  to  secure  a  new  body  of  colonists  in  the  west  of  England ! . 
This,  however,  is  impossible,  because  he  has  alienated  his  title  to  the 
lands  in  the  colonv,  and  could  not  get  further  favors  from  any  one. 

Securing  a  guide  from  the  proprietor  of  The  English  Hotel,  where 
I  was  stopping,  I  went  out  by  the  east  gate  of  the  city,  through  the 
orange  bazaars,  then  heaped  to  overflowing  with  the  ripe  and  lus- 
cious fruit,  nowhere  ir  all  the  world  so  large  and  good  as  at  Joppa ; 


THE   COLONY   IN   1868.  269 

through  the  Mohammedan  graveyards  (nowhere  in  all  the  world  are 
graveyards  such  dismal  places  as  in  Turkish  countries),  through 
groves  of  prickly-pear  trees,  many  of  whose  stems  were  ten  and  twelve 
inches  in  diameter ;  through  caravans  of  kneeling  camels,  patiently 
waiting  for  their  loads  of  oranges,  to  convey  them  to  unknown  dis- 
tances eastward  and  southward  over  the  deserts ;  through  groves  of 
pomegranates  and  orange-trees  and  lemon-trees,  bending  under  loads 
of  fruit,  or  fragrant  and  beautiful  with  flowers  red  and  white ;  and 
so  on  for  a  ten  minutes'  walk,  whose  variety  of  Oriental  types  would 
of  itself  repay  a  person  for  coming  all  the  way  to  Joppa  from 
America. 

I  said  ten  minutes ;  but  in  good  truth  it  took  me  an  hour.  The 
sandy  path  was  loaded  with  shells,  over  which  I  walked  at  first  gin- 
gerly, as  disliking  to  crush  these  beautiful  forms,  once  the  emblem 
of  pilgrimage  (see  Byron's  "  sandal-shoon  and  scalop-shell ").  The 
banks  under  the  broad  cactus  were  red  with  the  flowers  of  the  anem- 
one, and  blue  with  another  floral  type,  and  yellow  with  a  third. 
Strange  birds  wooed  me  to  pause  and  observe  them ;  but  at  this  rate 
I  should  never  reach  the  colony,  and  so  thought  my  staid  dragoman, 
who  looked  back  upon  me  occasionally  with  a  smile  of  pity,  not 
nntinged  with  contempt  at  my  simpleness  in  observing  objects  so 
common-place. 

The  colony  consisted  of  a  dozen  or  twenty  wooden  houses,  built 
of  the  lumber  brought  from  Maine.  The  first  I  approached  was 
Brother  Floyd's.  I  found  that  good  man  preparing,  with  his  wagon 
and  team  (the  only  wagon  and  team,  be  it  observed,  in  all  the  realms 
of  King  Solomon),  to  load  a  British  vessel  with  the  bones  that  for 
unnumbered  centuries  had  whitened  and  resisted  the  tooth  of  dog, 
jackal,  and  hyena,  on  the  plains  of  Joppa.  Waiting  at  the  house, 
Mr.  Adams  joined  me  here ;  a  heavy,  shambling,  good-natured,  loqua- 
cious, self-conceited  man,  about  fifty-five  years  of  age.  While  I  was 
sitting  there  the  American  Consul-General  of  Egypt  (Mr.  Charles 
Hale),  who  had  come  up  on  the  same  steamer  with  me  the  night  before, 
called,  and  we  all  walked  to  Mr.  Adams'  house  together.  Mr.  Adams 
raised  the  American  flag  in  our  honor,  and  this  afforded  me  the 
opportunity  of  observing  from  his  house-tops  that  he  had  one  of  the 
finest  views  of  sea  and  country  that  the  place  afforded.  Mr.  Toombs 
was  lying  ill  with  Syrian  fever,  and  had  been  dangerously  low.  Mrs. 
Adams  and  her  little  son  made  up  the  family. 

I  conclude  my  article  by  saying  that  at  the  dinner  given  in  my  honor 
that  evening  by  the  Kaimakam  or  Governor,  Noureddin  Effendi  and 
Mr.  Adams  were  present;  and  during  several  hours  that  we  sat 
together  at  that  hospitable  board  he  fully  confirmed  the  impression  I 
had  previously  formed  of  him,  that  of  all  men  living  he  was  one  of 
the  last  to  undertake  to  manage  a  colony  upon  the  Syrian  coast. 


»•  «•«.  e 


pu. 


MAP  OF 

THE     ROUTE     FROM 
JOPPA 

TO 

JERUSALEM. 


CHAPTER 

GOING   UP  TO  JERUSALEM. 

FTER  completing  my  examinations  of  the  city  of  Joppa,  1 
started,  May  2,  1868,  to  follow  "the  Burden-Bearers,"  who 
bore  the  heavy  beams  of  cedar  and  other  ponderous  mate- 
rials up  the  precipitous  cliffs  to  Jerusalem.  I  left  Joppa  at 
3  P.M.  to  go  by  way  of  Ramleh  and  Kolonieh,  on  the  new 
turnpike-road. 

Passing  through  the  Jerusalem  Gate,  the  only  gate  on  the  land- 
side,  I  note  a  few  of  the  noises  that  struck  my  ear :  they  are  the 
snarls  and  yelps  of  crowds  of  dogs ;  the  wild,  sweet  notes  of  birds ; 
the  cry  of  the  muezzin  high  in  the  minaret ;  the  "  poll-parrotings " 
of  the  natives — inveterate  gabblers  they  are;  the  shrieks  of  the 
camels  protesting  against  their  loads,  and  the  jingle  of  their  bells ; 
the  snort,  tramp,  and  squeal  of  horses ;  the  swearing  of  a  party  of 
British  sailors,  "on  leave"  for  Jerusalem,  but  unable  to  pass  the 
alcoholic  vender  or  dram-seller  of  arrack — a  detestable  compound 
made  of  dates,  and  likely  to  use  up  all  their  "  leave "  right  here  at 
Joppa;  the  awful  Plutonian  bray  of  the  nine  donkeys,  all  in  the 
same  key ;  and,  finally,  the  laugh  and  frolic  of  mobs  of  boys  idling 
away  the  hours  of  youth  under  the  orange-trees.  A  Judge  (Kadi) 
was  holding  court  in  the  gateway,  and  had  just  ordered  a  fellow 
flogged  for  stealing  a  sailor's  knife.  Quick  and  condign  the  trial 
and  judgment;  from  the  moment  the  Kadi  began  to  question  him  to 
the  moment  he  was  kicked  out  of  the  gate,  lacerated  and  bleeding, 
was  less  than  five  minutes,  and  this  included  indictment,  answer, 
summing-up,  and  flogging, — thirteen  strokes,  well  laid  on  his  bare 
soles.  The  felloe  bawled  manfully,  but  we  all  laughed.  It  was  rich. 
I  really  f.  It  good  over  it.  Fiat  justitia,  etc.  I  think  of  the  incident 
even  now  with  satisfaction.  My  nine  donkeys  fairly  roared  with 
Joj  (in  minors)  at  the  transaction. 


272  ACROSS  THE   PLAIN  OF  SHAROX. 

T.he  ride  in  this  weather  and  at  this  season  is  delightful.  It  only 
needs  good  companionship  to  make  it  perfectly  delicious ;  but  my 
companion,  alas !  is  a  negro  cavalier  (as  the  gentleman  is  styled  in 
the  grandiloquent  dragoman-language).  He  is  assisted  by  a  muleteer 
of  the  lowest  and  most  sinister  class  conceivable.  There  was  a 
grievance  of  some  kind  that  possessed  that  muleteer's  mind  from  the 
start  He  swore  (in  Arabic)  all  the  way  to  Ramleh.  His"allahs" 
were  curiously  intermingled  with  "  mejeedy "  and  "howadjee,"  and 
"  backsheesh,"  and  he  wouldn't  be  comforted,  nor  would  he  keep  up 
with  me  on  the  road,  despite  all  that  my  cavalier  and  myself  could  do 
to  instigate  him.  Once  he  threw  my  carpet-bag  on  the  ground,  burst- 
ing it  open  and  injuring  it.  I  have  it  yet,  with  that  muleteer's 
defacement  stamped  upon  it.  Altogether,  he  was  an  infamous  speci- 
men of  a  muleteer — and,  by  the  way,  he  had  no  mule  either,  but  rode 
a  wretched  horse. 

But  oh,  that  delightful  ride  over  the  plain  of  Sharon !  How  the 
memory  thereof  stirs  me  to  grateful  tears  as  I  write.  They  intermingle 
with  the  thoughts  of  that  dead  boy  of  whose  decease  I  have  just 
heard  (February  2, 1872).  The  first  hour  was  chiefly  under  orange- 
groves,  yellow  with  heavy  fruit,  the  largest  and  sweetest  in  the  world. 
In  them  happy  songsters  made  melody  for  the  American  howadjee  as 
he  rode  along.  The  fences  were  of  the  immense  cactus,  or  prickly- 
pear,  whose  trunks  are  often  twelve  inches  in  diameter,  and  leavea 
eighteen  inches  in  length — large  as  elephants'  ears — and  thorns  keen 
as  cambric  needles  make  good  barriers,  wherever  used.  I  think  if 
fences  of  these  were  set  up  among '  the  "  amazing  trials "  to  be  en- 
countered in  a  Masonic  lodge,  but  few  candidates  would  get 
through!  At  this  season  the  owners  are  trimming  off  the  dead 
leaves,  the  women  and  children  bearing  them  away  in  baskets  for 
fuel.  Interspersed  with  the  orange-trees  are  the  lemon,  fig,  pome 
granate,  pear,  carob,  cherry,  and  others,  of  whose  very  names  I  am 
innocent  A  large  tree  with  thick  blue  blossoms  is  called  by  the 
English-speaking  residents  here  the  lilac-tree. 

The  only  drawbacks  to  the  scene  are  the  lepers  and  other  beggars, 
disgusting  from  physical  mutilations,  who  pierce  my  ears  with  wail- 
ings.  That  they  are  miserable  is  plain  to  see,  for  death  alone  can  ter- 
minate their  anguish,  and  I  do  not  try  to  resist  the  impulse  to  "give 
them  an  alms."  Two  elegant  fountains  stand  by  the  roadside,  showing 
by  their  inscriptions  that  they  were  placed  here  under  promptings  of 
philanthropy  alone.  Built  into  them  are  fragments  of  large  and  splen- 


FLOWS  AND  PICNICS.  27H 

did  columns  of  marble  and  granite,  that  speak  loudly  of  Egypt ;  and  the 
water-trough  of  one  of  them,  like  that  which  I  saw  three  weeks  ago 
outside  of  the  old  gate  of  Tyre,  is  a  splendidly  carved  marble  sarcopha- 
gus or  stone-coffin,  from  which  the  original  tenant  had  long  since 
been  expelled  with  ignominy  and  contempt. 

I  observed  here  an  object,  worn  by  the  females,  different  from 
anything  that  had  previously  met  my  eye,  viz.,  a  black  cloth  tied 
over  the  face  just  below  the  eyes,  in  such  a  manner  that  the  nose, 
mouth,  and  chin  are  hidden.  This  cloth  is  ornamented  with  em- 
broidery and  jewels,  and  is  altogether  the  most  ridiculous  ornament 
ever  imposed  by  fashion  upon  the  fair  sex.  I  imagine  Madame 
Demorest  enforcing  it,  and  my  daughters  wearing  it  Laughing  at 
the  conceit,  I  pass  on. 

The  variety  of  characters  met  upon  this  road  is  endless.  Amongst 
them  is  an  Arab  mounted  on  a  beautiful  horse,  magnificently 
accoutred,  who  gave  me  the  most  graceful  of  salaams.  I  must  say, 

when  these  fellows  are  polite,  they  outvie  Monsieur  Le 

himself. 

A  Fellah  (a  very  low  feller  indeed)  plowing  with  a  cow  and  an  ass 
yoked  together — a  palpable  violation  of  the  law  of  Moses.  He 
left  his  strangely  assorted  team  to  ask  a  backsheesh.  I  gave  him  a 
para,  which  is  about  the  value  of  the  quadrin  or  mite  of  olden  time, 
worth  one-tenth  of  a  cent.  The  coin  is  but  little  used  at  present, 
but  I  had  purchased  a  lot  to  carry  home  with  me,  and  rather  unwil- 
lingly spared  him  one.  I  fear  he  was  not  sufficiently  thankful  for  the 
boon.  The  patent  plow  with  which  he  was  turning  up  the  soil 
(loose  with  seashells)  is  the  one 
lettered  a  in  my  cut. 

Such  a  plow  weighs  about 
eight  pounds,  and  there  is  money 
in  it  at  $1  apiece. 

It  is  pleasant  to  watch  the 
numerous  picnic  parties  coming 
out  of  Joppa  to  spend  the  after- 
noon on  this   flowery  carpet  of       aiplow    6iyoke.  /,  goad,  etc.  e,  points. 
Sharon.      Each    party    consists 

of  a  single  family  only.  They  never  oome  nearer  than  a  hundred 
paces  of  me,  then  stop,  the  slaves  and  pipe-bearers  spread  rugs  and 
mats  on  the  ground,  the  party  seat  themselves,  coffee  is  made  and 
handed  round  in  a  minute,  pipes  are  lit,  and  the  enioyment  begins 

18 


874  WILD  FLOWERS  OF  SHABOff. 

Sloth  is  their  greatest  curse;  quiet  (or,  as  they  call  it,  keef]  is  theii 
idea  t>f  enjoyment.  Although  I  would  not  violate  their  laws  of 
etiquette  by  approaching  them,  yet  I  could  plainly  enough  hear  their 
phantageia,  their  sharp,  quavering  notes  of  joy.  They  suddenly  raise 
their  voices  from  the  lowest  monotone  to  the  highest  pitch,  then 
turn  it  into  a  real  war-whoop  by  clapping  the  hand  upon  the  mouth. 

Passed  the  Fountain  of  Abraham  (Ain  Ibraheem).  These  ains  or 
fountains  were  formerly  much  used  for  oratories  or  praying-houses, 
and  it  would  be  convenient  to  sit  here  by  this  cool  water-pool  if  I 

had  to  listen  again  to  the  long,  heavy  prayer  of  Dr. when  he 

opened  the  Grand  Lodge  of in  my  hearing. 

At  twenty  minutes  to  four  the  Plain  of  Sharon  opens  before  me  in 
all  its  flowery  luxuriance,  presenting,  at  one  view,  the  variety  of 
travellers  and  the  pastoral  and  farming  scenes  identified  with  this 
ancient  country  from  its  earliest  history. 

I  cannot  name  a  tithe  of  the  wild-flowers  that  delight  me  as  I  ride 
along.  The  myrtle  is  certainly  here ;  the  lavender,  broom,  hyssop, 
sage,  rue,  and  wild  thyme  abundantly.  The  winding  valley  rolls  in 
waves  of  wheat  and  barley,  the  hillsides  are  mantled  with  groves  of 
olives.  It  is  a  vast  mosaic  of  green  and  brown,  jasper  and  verd- 
antique.  The  little  hills  laugh  with  plenty.  The  whole  landscape 
bears  marks  of  gladness.  How  beautiful  the  Plain  of  Sharon  must 
have  been  in  the  days  when  it  was  cultivated  by  Hebrew  skill  and 
assiduity,  irrigated  and  made  gentle  by  rotation  of  crops.  An  experi- 
enced writer  says :  "  No  country  in  the  world  is  blessed  with  a  more 
beautiful  and  varied  flora  than  the  United  States,  and  there  are  few 
portions  of  its  flowery  soil  I  have  not  trodden,  from  Florida  to  Min- 
nesota. My  eye  is  familiar  with  a  very  great  variety  of  wild-flowers, 
but  on  the  Plain  of  Sharon  I  entered  upon  a  new  experience  of 
botanical  wealth  and  glory." 

As  a  fair  specimen  of  the  class  of  travellers  met  here,  I  append  a  cut 
Upon  this  road  were  footmen,  donkeys,  mules,  horses,  and  camels. 
Women  borne  along  upon  the  backs  of  these  different  animals,  in  con- 
trivances resembling  large  boxes,  balanced  with  some  skill.  Others 
rode  astride,  like  the  "  sterner  "  sex.  A  picnic  party  enjoyed  themselves 
upon  the  soft  grass.  On  every  side  the  plowmen  were  at  their  labors 
with  their  miserable  plows,  and  their  poor  little  heifers  to  drag  them. 
Great  birds  (storks)  stood  upright  around  the  marshy  places,  patiently 
uniting  for  frogs,  which  they  love  with  a  Frenchman's  admiration. 
An  eagle  was  skimming  the  plain  in  the  distance,  and  hawks  nearer  at 


MOUNTAINS   OF   DAN. 


275 


hand.    Great  fields  of  wheat  and  barley  nearly  ripe  encroached  upon 

the  road,  usually  without  fence  or  protection.  Joppa  is  hidden  behind 

me  by  the  intervening  groves.    Far  on  the  right,  interminable  sand 

ridges,  crowned  with  telegraph  poles, 

show    where    the    coast-line    tends 

southward    towards    Egypt.      This 

road  is  the  one  upon  which  at  least 

one  thousand  workmen  are  engaged 

making  a  highway  to  connect  Joppa 

with  Jerusalem.     It  is  well  engineer- 

ed,  ditched  at  the  sides,  and  with 

good  bridges  where  needful.    Upon 

a  hill  far  ahead  is  an  Arab  village, 

appearing   quite  pretty   in    the  dis- 

tance, and  opposite  to  it  a  wely  or 

Mohammedan  tomb.      The  natural 

features  of  Sharon  resemble  in  al- 

most every  particular   the   prairies 

of  the  West,  exhibited  at  their  pretti- 

est.    It  has  not  such  a  matting  of 

flowers    as    our    Western     prairies, 

though  the  varieties  are  more  nume- 

rous.    The  largest  of  the  poppies,  a 

conspicuous  object  here,  grows  about 

two  miles  from  Tyre,  near  a  foun- 

tain.   Here  are  the  ordinary  "  white 

weed  "  of  our  country,  a  small,  yel- 

low flower,  like  the  dandelion,  and 

many  others. 

The  mountains  of  Dan  rise  glori- 
ously  before  me,  while  the  mellow  evening  sun  and  the  delightful 
sea-breeze  upon  my  back  give  the  last  grace  to  my  journey  that 
nature  is  capable  of.  Such  are  my  first  impressions  of  the  Plain 
of  Sharon.  The  long  trains  of  sheep  and  goats  feeding  over  the 
prairie,  presenting  the  vivid  contrast  of  black  with  white,  are  led 
(not  driven)  by  their  shepherds,  who  call  them  at  intervals,  ac- 
cording to  the  Scriptural  allusion.  May  I  be  as  ready  to  follow  my 
Divine  Leader  to  "green  pastures"  as  these  poor  creatures  are  to 
follow  theirs. 

Soon  I  overtake  a  line  of  camels  laden  with  dragomans'  goods, 


BEDOUIN. 


276 


TOWER   AT   RAMLEH. 


beds,  bedsteads,  tents,  working  materials,  etc.,  etc.,  intended  for  some 
party  of  travellers  coming  on  behind  me.  Before  night  they  will 
pitch  those  tents  upon  the  soft,  green  prairie-grass,  and  enjoy  their 
first  night  of  "Tent-Life  in  the  Holy  Land,"  as  Prime  jauntily 
terms  it. 

And  now  there  opens  out  upon  my  eyes  a  large  olive  orchard,  always 
an  attractive  object  to  me.  Under  the  trees  is  a  blind  man  following 
his  conductor,  by  holding  out  the  end  of  a  cane,  and  touching  his 
back.  A  little  further,  and  the  village,  which  seemed  so  romantic  in 
the  distance,  proves  to  be  a  mere  collection  of  mud-huts,  where  cat- 
tle, sheep,  human  beings,  and  vermin  of  the  liveliest  quality  herd 
indiscriminately  together.  A  large  water-shed,  in  a  grove  of  trees, 
points  to  the  manner  in  which  the  precious  fluid  is  brought  to  the 
surface  from  the  wells  of  this  plain.  A  grove  of  palm-trees  next 
appears,  by  many  degrees  the  most  beautiful  tree  in  the  world.  In 
two  hours  from  Joppa,  the  tall  tower  of  Eamleh  comes  in  sight,  the 
only  object  of  the  sort,  I  believe,  in  Palestine.  Another  hour  bringa 
me  to  the  town  itself,  much  larger  and  better  built  than  I  had  ex- 
pected to  see  it,  and  there  I  was  welcomed  by  a  universal  cry  of 
"  backsheesh,  backsheesh,  howadjee,"  which  I  had  heard  before. 
I  always  take  these  words  to  imply  the  warmest  sentiments  of  respect, 
and  bowing  courteously  in  response,  I  pass  on. 


ARIMATHEA.      RAMLEH. 


A    HAKD   XIGHT   OF   IT.  277 

What  particular  sin  I  had  been  guilty  of,  for  which  the  penalty 
was  to  be  sent  to  the  Locanda  or  hotel  of  Ramleh,  instead  of  the 
sonvent,  I  shall  never  know ;  but  whatever  it  was,  I  feel  that  the 
penance  was  ample,  if  miserable  fare,  and  a  hard  bed,  only  soft  with 
fleas  and  only  musical  with  mosquitoes,  and  noisy,  drunken  guests, 
deserve  the  term. 

My  fancies  on  this  lively  mattress  kept  pace  with  the  skipping  of 
the  fleas.  I  thought  of  everything,  from  the  way  Brother  0.  G.  S. 
canted  his  Senior  Deacon's  rod,  and  broke  a  chandelier  over  my 
head  one  night,  to  the  circumstance  of  600  men  leaving  here,  on  a 
certain  occasion  (Judges  xviii.),  and  going  a  hundred  miles  north, 
plundering  and  insulting  the  people  as  they  went,  assaulting  an  un- 
armed town,  and  butchering  everybody  in  it.  My  muleteer  demand- 
ed, on  arrival,  five  francs.  As  I  had  paid  his  employer  everything  in 
advance,  I  refused,  and  the  fellow  actually  hoivled  around  the  entrance 
to  that  Locanda  all  night.  He  ate  nothing,  gave  his  horse  nothing, 
but  simply  swore  and  yelled  until  daybreak.  He  out-screamed  the 
hyenas  and  jackals  who  made  the  noise  in  the  graveyards  out  of  town. 
In  the  morning  my  cavalier  gave  him  a  thrashing,  took  my  carpet- 
bag upon  his  own  saddle,  and  drove  the  scamp  back  to  Joppa,  where 
I  trust  he  lives  to  repent  of  his  sins.  Whereupon  we  "  looked  to  the 
east,"  and  pursued  our  journey  in  peace  and  harmony. 

Eiding  out  of  Ramleh,  it  was  striking  to  mark  the  quick  transi- 
tion from  the  gabble  of  the  town  to  the  stillness  of  the  country. 
There  is  no  such  thing  as  country  life  here  in  Palestine,  every  dwell- 
ing, without  exception,  being  in  a  town  or  village. 

Early  on  Sunday  morning,  May  3d  (as  early  as  five  o'clock),  I 
started  for  a  ramble  to  Jerusalem,  and  arrived  at  1  P.M.  A  road 
was  being  rapidly  completed  by  the  Pasha  of  Jerusalem.  All  the 
rocky  passes  had  been  opened.  The  steeper  hills  were  ascended  by 
serpentine  ways.  The  streams  were  substantially  bridged,  and  at  the 
rate  of  progress  thus  going  on,  there  would  be  a  carriage-way  from 
Joppa  to  Jerusalem  within  a  few  weeks.  Around  the  town  of  Ram- 
leh the  olive-trees  grow  by  thousands.  The  land  is  rich  and  black 
in  excess.  A  neat  fragment  of  arches  remains  to  show  what  was 
formerly  a  grand  structure.  An  immense  wheat-field  was  on  my 
right,  with  the  ripening  grain  rank  and  luxuriant  upon  it.  A  party 
of  thirteen  sailors,  from  the  English  ships  at  Joppa,  were  ahead  of 
me,  as  merry  as  a  ten  days'  leave  and  a  bottle  of  arrack  apiece  could 
make  them. 


278  THE  PLUTONIAN  BRAY. 

My  cavalier  looms  up  grandly  this  morniiig.  He  is  a  negro,  but  of  a 
fine  type,  small  head,  keen,  expressive  eyes,  sits  erect  upon  his  saddle, 
his  carbine  lying  before  him  and  short-sword  at  his  side.  His  splen- 
ded  stallion  curvetting  under  him,  he  looks  the  very  picture  of  an 
armed  guard.  Yet  for  all  that,  I  would  rather  depend  on  myself  in 
a  difficulty,  than  half  a  dozen  of  him.  These  native  cavaliers  are  con- 
sidered arrant  cowards  at  best,  strong  as  they  look  to  the  unsophisti- 
cated howadjee. 

Advancing  eastward,  the  mountains  of  Dan  present  their  graceful 
outlines  quite  distinctly.  Directly  before  me  is  a  clift  in  the  heigh  ts, 
through  which  the  turnpike  passes.  I  have  now  an  ascent  to  make 
of  nearly  2,600  feet,  "  going  up  to  Jerusalem."  Tlie  soil  is  about 
eighteen  inches  deep,  resting  upon  a  foundation  of  gravel.  The 
plants  and  flowers  are  as  yesterday,  except  that  the  common  Ameri- 
can "-dog  fennel "  which  I  learned  to  hate  so  bitterly  in  Mississippi 
(1841 -'50),  begins  to  abound,  and  a  miserable  interloper  it  is,  wherever 
found.  The  solemn  roar  of  the  donkey  is  heard  from  the  villages  on 
the  hillsides.  Mellowed  by  the  distance,  even  that  Plutonian  bray 
(in  the  minorest  of  keys)  sounds  tuneful.  The  camels  browsing  on 
the  plains  look  like  immense  ostriches,  as  their  long  necks  reach 
hither  and  thither  in  search  of  food.  The  wind  makes  mournful  re- 
frain through  the  insulators  on  the  telegraph-poles,  just  as  it  does 
along  our  wires  at  home.  The  swallows  dart  swiftly  under  my  horse's 
feet,  to  catch  the  insects  as  we  start  them  up. 

At  6.30  A.M.  1  reach  the  town  of  Kahob,  on  the  left,  only  a  cluster 
of  dirty  mud-huts.  Thus  far  I  have  never  seen  a  dwelling-place  in 
all  Palestine,  outside  of  a  town  or  village.  Here  now  is  a  patch  of 
tobacco,  the  plants  being  six  or  eight  inches  high,  and  looking  dwarf- 
ish to  the  eye  of  a  Kentuckian.  An  elegant  chapiter  from  some 
costly  marble  column  lies  on  the  ground,  and  another  one  of  the 
same  class  a  little  further  on.  A  well  of  water,  with  a  heavy  stone 
resting  on  it,  recalls  many  Scriptural  allusions.  The  fig-trees  are  un- 
commonly large  and  luxuriant.  Three  little  backsheesh-seekers  are 
standing  by  the  roadside,  with  the  totality  of  one  shirt  to  the  three, 
and  that  a  dilapidated  one. 

At  7.45  A.M.  I  reach  Latroon,  the  traditional  home  of  the  penitent 
thief,  referred  to  in  Dies  Irce,  thus : 

"  Et  Latronum  ex  audisti, 
Mihi  quoque  spem  dedisti," 


KHAN  CAROOB.  279 

— As  thou  didst  listen  to  the  thief  on  the  cross,  so  also  give  me 
nope. 

I  fear,  however,  that  the  thieves  who  live  hereabouts  so  numerously 
at  the  present  day  are  anything  but  "  penitent."  Here  I  overtake 
nine  British  sailors,  who  started  yesterday  to  walk  from  Joppa  to 
Jerusalem.  These  brave  mariners  are  stranded  here,  high  and  dry, 
on  a  lee-shore.  Their  only  money  is  half-sovereigns,  and  the  whole 
nine  of  them  can't  muster  half  an  Arabic  word.  So  I  lend  them  a 
lot  of  small  change  to  buy  coffee  with,  instruct  them  graciously  in 
the  secrets  of  Turkish  currency,  and  pass  on.  Two  days  afterwards 
I  met  them  in  the  streets  of  Jerusalem,  and  they  paid  me  back  my 
loan  with  thanks  and  British  honor.  Kising  the  hill  east  of  Latroon, 
a  romantic  valley  opens  before  me;  well-watered  and,  in  its  way, 
excelling  anything  I  have  seen  in  the  country.  What  a  paradise 
this  Vale  of  Avoca  would  make  under  American  cultivation  !  At  its 
eastern  extremity  is  a  large  and  welcome  spring  of  water,  called  in 
this  country  an  ain,  or  eye.  At  9  A.M.,  stopped  for  refreshments 
at  a  native  khan.  This  Arabic  style  of  "  eating-house  "  is  simple  but 
effective.  The  chap  who  keeps  this  hotel  (I  call  it  Khan  Caroob} 
found  a  natural  cave  to  begin  with.  At  right- angles  with  that  he 
built  of  the  abundant  native  stone  a  room  twelve  feet  square.  From 
the  boughs  of  an  ancient  carob-tree  he  laid  poles  across  to  his  wall, 
covered  them  with  bushes,  and  behold  Khan  Caroob  complete — as  com- 
plete as  the  St.  Nicholas  itself.  Here  all  day  he  retails  coffee,  hard- 
boiled  eggs,  and  arrack,  to  passers-by.  His  terms  are  more  liberal 
than  at  the  first-class  American  hotels;  for  I  only  paid  him  three 
piastres  (twelve  cents)  for  several  cups  of  coffee,  and  an  assortment 
of  "  sundries  "  for  self  and  cavalier.  His  eggs,  I  would  remark,  are 
boiled  harder  than  I  thought  hens'-eggs  capable  of. 

The  vile  drink  which  turns  pale  (white)  when  you  pour  water  into 
it,  is  called  arrack,  from  the  word  arraga,  "  to  sweat."  It  is  the  whis- 
key of  the  Holy  Land — well  named  sweat-whiskey !  I  can  testify 
to  perspiration  following  the  drinking  of  the  glass-full.  It  makes 
me  sweat  now  to  recall  the  miserable  sensations  produced  by 
arrack. 

As  I  sat  on  the  cushions  of  Khan  Caroob,  I  could  hear,  at  the 
distance  perhaps  of  several  miles,  the  sorrowful  cry  of  the  females  in 
some  funeral  ceremony.  They  keep  the  breath  at  the  top  of  the  voice 
as  long  as  they  can  stand  it  without  suffocation,  and  then  end  the 
shriek  with  a  low  sob.  Here,  too,  I  saw  a  native  asleep,  his  head  on 


280  MEETING   A   BROTHER. 

a  pillow  made  by  heaping  up  small  stones  and  laying  his  aria  ovei 
them,  like  Jacob  at  Bethel. 

Passing  into  the  hill-country,  the  numerous  little  villages  on  the 
low  swells  of  ground,  with  their  whitewashed  walls  and  white,  flat 
roofs,  look  like  a  parcel  of  ivory  dice  scattered  here  and  there  over  the 
country.  And  now  the  road  begins  in  good  earnest  to  ascend  the 
hills  of  Dan.  For  four  hours  I  ride  along  the  really  good  way  which 
the  Pasha  is  macadamizing,  until  the  crest  is  reached,  near  Jerusa- 
lem. At  11.05  A.M.  I  am  opposite  the  romantic  and  well-known  town 
of  Abou  Ghosh,  formerly  a  celebrated  robber  upon  these  hills,  of 
whose  Masonic  qualities  I  shall  speak  in  another  chapter.  He  was 
a  sort  of  king  in  Syria,  a  custom-house  extortioner  of  the  "  general 
order"  system,  who  made  levies  upon  all  persons  passing  by  his 
Grape-town,  old  Kirjath-Jearim.  He  was  the  Great  Sheikh  of  the 
children  of  Beni  Hassan,  and  they  owned  no  other  lord.  In  these 
still  and  sterile  mountains,  he  struck  more  than  a  gold-mine  in 
"  sitting  at  the  receipt  of  custom."  I  have  always  had  a  high  ap- 
preciation of  his  character. 

At  11.35  a  large  vineyard,  the  only  one  I  have  seen,  where  the 
trunks  of  vines  are  so  large  that,  like  trees,  they  hold  up  their  own 
boughs  and  foliage.  At  12.30,  a  charming  valley.  I  observe  here  a 
structure  of  massive  stones,  presenting  the  far-famed  Hebraico- 
Pho?nician  bevel,  so  attractive  to  a  Freemason's  eye.  At  1.10  P.M.  (it 
being  about  5  A.M.  at  my  Kentucky  home),  I  reach  the  crest  of  the 
hill,  and  shortly  afterwards  sight  "  the  Holy  City." 

At  Khan  Caroob  I  fell  in  with  Captain  Edward  Gladstone,  attached 
to  the  British  ship  Lord  Clyde,  now  at  Joppa,  and  a  member  of  Phre- 
nix  Lodge,  Portsmouth,  England.  His  companionship  over  these 
weary  hills  of  Dan  and  Benjamin  made  the  way  agreeable.  After- 
wards we  frequently  consorted  together  under  the  mystical  level. 

It  is  impossible  for  a  person  of  feeling  to  look  over  the  desolate 
hills  that  surround  Jerusalem  without  sorrowful  emotions.  Every 
other  sentiment  merges  into  pity  and  sympathy  as  the  traveller 
approaches  the  Holy  City.  A  stillness  like  that  of  the  grave  per- 
vades the  land.  You  meet  and  pass  the  wayfarer,  native  and  foreigner, 
without  the  exchange  of  a  syllable,  and  enter  the  gate  of  tne  city 
with  a  sensation  of  awe,  as  though  you  were  about  to  visit  a  resting- 
place  of  the  dead. 

After  my  return  home,  an  intelligent  lady  asked  me,  in  the  hear- 
ing of  a  congregation,  "  How  does  a  person  feel  upon  the  first  vie* 


FIRST   VIEW   OF   JERUSALEM.  281 

of  Jerusalem  ?  "  Others  may  propound  the  same  inquiry.  A  senti- 
ment almost  feverish  is  aroused  in  the  minds  of  some  in  anticipation 
of  this.  Crossing  the  broad  Atlantic, — dashing  over  the  iron-way 
{chemin  de  fer,  as  the  French  style  the  railroad,  the  iron-road), — 
plowing  the  blue  waters  of  the  Mediterranean, — climbing  the  hills  of 
Benjamin, — all  the  time  drawing  nearer,  the  excitement  increases, 
and  I  have  known  women,  yes,  and  strong  men,  to  pause,  to  calm 
themselves  ere  they  surmount  the  last  tumulus  that  hides  from  them 
the  long-desired  view.  Others,  as  if  anxious  to  have  it  over,  gallop 
up  that  eminence,  and  so  hasten  the  fulfillment  of  their  joy.  The 
reader  will  not  fail  to  recall  the  story  of  the  much-overrated  Eichard 
of  England.  When  he  had  left  his  camp  at  Ajalon  and  reached  Miz- 
peh,  six  miles  northwest  of  Zion,  his  guide  informed  him  the  city 
was  in  sight.  At  this,  the  king  covered  his  face  with  his  mailed 
hands  and  cried  out  in  French,  "  Ah,  Lord  God,  let  me  never  see 
Jerusalem  unless  I  am  also  to  enter  it ! "  I  may  as  well  remark  here 
that  he  never  did  enter  it. 

My  first  view  was  more  prosaic.  I  was  extremely  weary  with  my 
ride  from  Eamleh.  It  was  past  noon  of  May  3,  1868,  an  extremely 
sultry  day.  Excessive  fatigue  is  a  sad  destroyer  of  romance.  Besides 
this,  I  had  been  already  more  than  two  months  in  Palestine  and 
Syria,  and  the  keen  edge  of  novelty  was  blunted.  Certainly  I  felt  a 
solemn  impression, — a  gratitude  to  God  that,  after  forty  years  of 
earnest  desire,  I  was  so  near  the  goal  of  my  search  ;  but  it  was  mingled 
with  a  strange  sentiment  of  doubt  and  mistrust  as  to  whether  I 
should  really  set  foot  within  the  courts  of  the  city. 

Afterwards  I  spent  an  hour  among  my  books,  gathering  in  the 
records  of  those  travellers  who  have  more  feelingly  described  their 
sentiments  as  they  stood  where,  on  that  auspicious  day,  I  was  privi- 
leged to  stand,  and  I  copy  some  for  my  readers.  Enough  will  be 
found  to  show  the  character  of  the  impressions  made  upon  suscepti- 
ble minds,  on  approaching  a  place  above  all  others  famed  in  the 
records  of  history — human  and  divine. 

Bunyan,  in  his  inimitable  parable,  gives  the  keynote  to  these  sen- 
timents. While  his  pilgrims  were  yet  upon  the  Delectable  Moun- 
tains, the  shepherds  said  to  one  another,  "  Let  us  now  show  them  the 
gates  of  the  Celestial  City,  if  they  have  skill  to  look  through  our 
perspective-glass!"  The  pilgrims  lovingly  accepted  the  invitation. 
So  "  they  led  them  to  a  hill  called  Clear,  and  gave  them  their  glass 
to  look.  Then  they  essayed  to  look,  but  the  remembrance  of  that 


282  DIVERSITY  OF  VIEWS. 

last  thing  the  shepherds  had  showed  them  (that  is,  the  By-way  to 
Hell)  made  their  hands  shake,  by  means  of  which  impediment  they 
could  not  look  steadily  through  the  glass.  Yet  they  thought  they 
«aw  something  like  the  Gate,  and  also  some  of  the  glory  of  the  place. " 
Is  not  this  exceedingly  good  reading  ?  Suppose  Bunyan  had  really 
visited  Jerusalem  and  the  Jordan,— what  descriptions  he  could  have 

given  us! 

And  again  :  When  the  pilgrims  were  got  over  the  Enchanted 
Ground,  and,  entering  into  the  country  of  Beulah,  were  within  sight 
of  the  city  they  were  aspiring  to,  there  met  them  here  some  of  the 
inhabitants  thereof;  "  for  in  this  land  the  Shining  Ones  commonly 
walked,  because  it  was  on  the  borders  of  Heaven ! " 

But  to  quote  from  some  of  our  more  literal  travellers : 

"  Jerusalem,  the  central  palatial  city,  bursts  out  from  the  moun- 
tains that  encircle  it,  apparently  but  a  few  rods  off.  But  the  rods 
are  miles.  The  first  view  is  sublime,  and  your  memory  is  taxed  with 
peopling  it  again.  As  I  near  the  gate  of  Solomon,  contemplation 
quickens  the  reverential  awe  with  which  I  gaze  upon  the  birthplace 
of  our  Saviour  and  of  his  religion." — Train. 

"  The  guides  pointed  out  a  succession  of  bluish-gray  hills,  and  a 
long,  low  line  of  wall,  surmounted  by  a  dome  which  stood  out  against 
the  sky.  Behold  Jerusalem!  Instinctively  every  one  drew  his 
bridle-rein  and  paused.  The  country  around  was  arid,  silent,  soli- 
tary. In  face  of  Calvary,  nature  itself  stood  still.  Mournful,  yet 
beautiful  to  the  Christian  heart  must  Jerusalem  ever  be." — Herbert. 

"  A  sudden  view  of  swelling  domes  and  towering  minarets  rising 
dimly  in  the  distance,  causes  us  to  check  our  horses  and  raise  our 
hearts  and  voices  gratefully  to  God.  While  we  gaze  upon  Jerusalem, 
as  she  sits  aloft  begirt  with  battlements,  some  of  the  party  fall  in  the 
dust  silently  breathing  their  fullness  of  joy.  It  is  an  era  in  our  lives 
never  to  be  forgotten. — Miss  Barclay. 

"  A  few  moments  brought  us  to  the  west  of  the  hill  Scopus.  In 
the  first  sight  of  Jerusalem  there  is  a  thrill  of  interest  that  is  scarce 
weakened  by  repetition,  and  we  can  only  pity  the  man  who  is  not, 
for  the  moment,  at  least,  imbued  with  the  pilgrim  spirit,  and  does 
not  feel  the  sight  to  be  one  of  the  privileges  of  his  life.  Enshrined 
in  the  depths  of  a  Christian's  affections,  linked  with  every  feeling  of 
faith  and  hope,  if  I  forget  thee,  0  Jerusalem,  let  my  right  hand  for- 
get her  cunning! " — Tristam. 

"  Our  muleteer  called  out  with  a  loud  voice,  '  Jerusalem,  Jerusa- 


DIVERSITY   OF  VIEWS.  283 

lem  !'  This  was  repeated  by  each  of  us  with  great  joy.  We  halted 
for  some  time  and  gazed  upon  the  memorable  city.  These  lines  oc- 
curred to  memory : 

« The  Holy  City  lifted  high  her  towers, 
And  higher  yet  the  glorious  Temple  reared ; 
The  pile  far  off  appearing  like  a  mount 
Of  alabaster,  topped  with  golden  spires.' 

"  So  excited  were  we  with  the  gaze  that  it  was  long  before  we  were 
sufficiently  composed  to  resume  our  journey." —  Ward. 

"A  glimpse  of  a  hill  whose  slopes  are  dotted  with  olive-trees, 
whose  summit  is  crowned  with  a  cluster  of  buildings.  '  The  Mount 
of  Olives  I '  we  exclaimed,  and  so  it  was.  A  moment  after,  advanc- 
ing, we  saw  domes  and  minarets,  and  then  the  massive  walls  and 
gates  of  the  city.  Oh,  sacred  hour !  oh,  moment  never  to  be  forgot- 
ten !  oh,  blessed  memorial  day  that  our  eyes  actually  rested  upon 
Jerusalem !  What  wonderful  associations  are  awakened !  what 
powerful  and  tearful  emotions  thrilled  my  heart !  Such  a  moment ! 
such  soul-thoughts  and  feelings  cannot  be  described.  I  dismounted, 
and  seating  myself  on  an  old  wall,  with  the  sacred  objects  before  me, 
read  portions  of  the  Psalms  and  the  New  Testament  that  refer  so 
beautifully,  tenderly,  and  gloriously  to  the  city  of  Mount  Zion  and 
of  God."— Phelps. 

"  From  the  mountain-pass  above  the  plain  beyond  Bireh  we  rode 
out  on  a  wide  waste  of  whitish  rocks,  and  beheld  in  the  distance  a 
walled  city,  dim  in  the  shades  of  the  coming  night." — Browne. 

"I  forgot -my  fatigue,  quickened  my  pace,  and  was  soon  on  the 
hill-top.  Pausing  to  look  round  me,  I  required  no  guide  to  point 
out  the  long,  low  line  of  battlemented  wall,  with  a  few  domes  and 
minarets  rising  above  it,  crowning  the  table-land, — a  hill  which  stood 
in  the  midst  of  hills.  I  knew  I  was  looking  upon  Jerusalem,  builded 
as  a  city,  and  the  mountains  round  about  her.  Though  I  have  seen 
Jerusalem  under  more  beautiful  aspects  and  from  more  favorable 
points  of  view,  the  first  sight  had  its  particular  charm." — Miss 
Rogers. 

"  Jerusalem  was  before  our  view.  We  stood  still  in  solemn  silence ; 
again  went  forward,  again  stood  still  and  gazed.  Our  feelings  were 
so  overpowering  that  we  could  neither  understand  them  nor  give 
them  expression.  '  I  am  strangely  disappointed,'  said  my  companion, 
yet  there  is  something  in  the  sight  strangely  affecting." — John 
Wilson. 

"El  Khuds,  said  Mahmoud,  spurring  his  horse  forward.     Gerusa- 


284  DIVERSITY   OF  VIEWS. 

lemma,  murmured  an  old  Italian,  folding  his  hands  in  prayer. 
ffegiopolis,  said  a  lusty  Greek  beggar  by  my  side.  As  for  me,  I  gazed 
upon  the  bright  city,  that  sprung  Tike  magic  from  the  bosom  of  the 
hills,  as  one  in  a  dream,  and  before  I  followed  on,  I  placed  a  stone 
upon  the  mounds  to  mark  the  hour  when  first  my  eyes  gazed  on  the 
city  of  our  Lord.  Men  in  every  tongue  babbled  some  favorite  scrap, 
treasured  up  for  years  to  be  sung  or  spoken,  as  a  beloved  song  that 
dying  men  request  to  hear  at  their  bedsides  in  the  last  supreme  mo- 
ments of  life.  This  to  us  here,  beneath  the  brilliant  and  unct  eokered 
sunshine,  the  pale,  distorted  rocky  wastes  beneath,  the  bald  and  deso- 
late plain  in  front,  in  sight  of  Olivet  and  Zion, — this  was  as  natural 
as  prayer." — N.  N.  Leech. 

"  The  point  gained,  the  Holy  City  lay  fair  and  peaceful  before  our 
snraptured  eyes.  Not  in  the  wild  forests  of  the  western  world,  not 
among  the  huge  works  of  Egyptian  art,  not  on  the  snow-clad  peaks 
of  romantic  Switzerland,  had  any  scene  so  riveted  our  gaze.  Heaven 
threw  its  shekinah  upon  the  scene,  and  clothed  the  hill  of  Zion  with 
a  robe  of  glory.  The  sweetest  memories  hovered,  like  fairest  angels, 
over  the  towers  of  Salem ;  past,  present,  and  future  all  concentrated 
in  the  oracle  of  God.  Zion,  Moriah,  Olivet,  rise  as  beacons  to  the 
wearied  soul,  and  all  are  bathed  in  the  radiance  of  the  Cross.  The 
scene  was  unspeakably  grand.  Our  overflowing  hearts  sent  forth 
their  swollen  streams  of  feeling  in  vocal  rejoicing." — El  Mukattem. 

"That  place!  it  is  Jerusalem.  What  a  thrill  went  through  the 
heart!  And  have  we  seen  Jerusalem  at  last !  We  ceased  to  speak, 
smitten  dumb  by  a  feeling  of  which  I  had  never  experienced  the  like, 
nor  ever  expect  to  know  again.  Wonder,  solemnity,  joy,  sadness,  all 
were  mingled  together,  let  above  these,  or  at  least  with  these,  rose 
np  affection :  affection  as  tender  and  profound  as  that  with  which 
one  regards  the  city  of  his  birth,  his  father's  resting-place,  his  chil- 
dren's nome.  Nationality  seemed  for  a  moment  lost  in  something 
greater  than  itself.  Jerusalem  has  a  thousand  objects  of  interest, 
and  it  was  the  sudden  uprising  of  these  in  one  glorious  -cloud  that 
so  fixed  the  eye  and  absorbed  the  mind.  The  city  seemed  to  possess 
magnetic  power.  We  felt  drawn  toward  it,  eager  to  stand  within  its 
gates."— Bonar. 

Scores  of  such  extracts,  swelling  into  a  volume,  might  be  made. 
For  my  own  part  I  simply  sung  three  or  four  Jerusalem  songs,  read 
a  dozen  Jerusalem  chapters,  and  heartily  praised  God. 

there  was  any  romance  in  my  own  associations  with  Jerusalem, 
it  was  connected  with  the  solemn  moment  when,  looking  back  from 
Mount  Scopus,  as  the  sun  began  to  descend  down  the  passes  of  Beth- 
horou,  I  took  my  farewell  view  of  its  battlements  and  towers,  two 


THE  MUSE  ON   MOUNT  SCOPUS.  285 

weeks  afterwards.    These  thoughts,  in  due  time,  ran  out  into  Terse, 
as  follows : 

Farewell,  Jerusalem  ; — thy  sun'  bends  low, 
And  warns  me  with  his  parting  beams  to  go : 
One  more  fond  look  ; — never  again  to  me 
On  Moab's  summit  shall  his  rising  be ; 
Never  on  flowery  Sharon's  westward  plain 
His  sitnset-visa>ge  greet  my  eyes  again  ; 
Though  other  suns  may  lighten  up  my  shore, 
Zion,  thy  sun  shall  gladden  me  no  more! 

Farewell,  blest  city ; — all  thy  sacred  hills, 
Thy  winding  valleys,  thy  historic  rills, 
Thy  sepulchres  that  pierce  the  mountain's  side, 
Thy  fragrant  gardens  'neath  Siloam's  side, 
With  me  I  bear,  by  loving  fancy's  aid, 
Inscribed  in  images  that  cannot  fade : 
Memory  may  forfeit  many  a  precious  gem, 
But  never  thee,  thou  best  Jerusalem. 

Farewell,  thou  Mount  beloved  ;  can  it  be 
The  gracious  KING  in  wrath  abandoned  thee  ? 
There  was  no  remedy :  such  clouds  of  sin 
Polluted  all  thy  courts,  without,  within, 
That  the  fierce  fire  of  vengeance  long  withheld 
Kindled  at  last ;  His  loving  heart  was  steeled : 
Then  up  those  bills  there  sm'ged  such  floods  of  flame, 
They  left  thee  but  "  a  by- word  and  a  name." 

Farewell !  above  the  skies  eternal  wait 
Glories  transcending  far  thy  best  estate ; 
There  gates  and  walls  with  precious  jewels  dressed 
And  streets  of  gold  allure  the  happy  guest ; 
There  flows  the  river  and  there  grows  the  tree — 
Water  of  life  and  endless  fruits  for  me ; 
And  (rod  hath  given  to  the  place  thy  name, 
The  Holy  City, — NEW  JEKUSALEM  1 


DIVISION  SEVENTH -THE  CLAY-GROUND. 


"  I  will  go;  peradventure  the  LORD  will  come  to  meet  me :  and  whateoevei 
He  sheweth  me  I  will  tell  thee.    And  he  went.'  — Ixumoers  xxiii.  3 

That  hour  of  deep  abasement  and  of  shame 
To  Him  the  brightest  of  His  life  became  • 
The  tears  of  penitence  His  heart  had  spent, 
The  deep  confession  which  to  heaven  He  sent, 
The  vow  of  restitution,  humbly  given, 
Brought  to  His  soul  a  rich  reward  from  heaven— 
Not  to  approve  the,  fraud  His  hand  did  trace. 
But  to  exalt  the  gift  of  goodness  and  of  grace. 

Howe'er  unworthy  and  how  much  forlorn, 

From  home  an  alien  and  from  comforts  shorn,     • 

Oppressed  with  grief  and  chastened  by  the  rod, 

Abandoned,  as  he  feared,  of  hope  and  God, 

In  vision  bright  before  His  inner  eye 

A  glorious  vista  opens  in  the  sky — 

Troops  of  angelic  forms  now  fill  the  air, 

They  bend  from  heaven  to  earth  in  grace  divinely  fkh 

Between  two  distant  worlds  a  medium  stands, 
The  space  is  crowded  by  angelic  bands  ; 
Rank  above  rank  the  glorious  forms  are  seen, 
Each  face  now  lit  by  heaven's  resplendent  sheen  ; 
And  from  the  farthest  point  of  that  long  line 
Jehovah's  face  in  rays  benignant  shine  ; 
Descending  gently  and  ascending,  they 
Bear  messages  of  peace  until  the  break  of  day. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 
BETWEEN  SUCCOTH  AND  ZARTHAN. 

HE  sixth  of  the  seven  Grand  Masonic  Localities  recognized 
in  the  present  volume,  is  the  Clay-Ground  between  Suc- 
coth  and  Zarthan  (or  Zeredathah).  The  allusions  to  these 
in  the  Masonic  lectures  are  positive,  though  brief.  In 
describing  the  brazen  pillars  and  sacred  vessels  of  the  Tem- 
ple, the  following  is  the  text :  "  In  the  plain  of  Jordan  did  the  king 
cast  them,  in  the  clay-ground  between  Succoth  and  Zarthan" 
(1  Kings  vii.  46).  "In  the  plain  of  Jordan  did  the  king  cast  them, 
in  the  clay-ground  between  Succoth  and  Zeredathah  "  (2  Chronicles 
iv.  17).  The  site  of  Succoth,  now  termed  Seikoot,  is,  in  a  direct 
line,  about  forty-five  miles  northeast  of  Jerusalem,  and  "  in  the  plain 
of  Jordan,"  as  described. 

It  was  not  in  my  power  to  visit  the  locality  now  under  descrip- 
tion. The  extreme  heat  of  the  Jordan  valley  in  the  middle  of  May, 
the  want  even  of  a  horse-track  to  that  unfrequented  quarter  of  Pal- 
estine, and,  above  all,  the  fearful  thickets  of  thorns  that  covered  the 
whole  valley,  which  made  it  almost  as  impassable  to  a  horseman, 
withouu  a  party  to  clear  the  way,  as  a  Mississippi  canebrake — these 
formed  a  body  of  reasons  for  my  failure  in  this  direction.  But  I 
iourneyed  that  way  as  far  afi  any  passable  road  was  found  opened,  and 
the  present  chapter  shall  give  an  account  of  what  lies  along  the 
path. 

A  singular  fact  came  to  light  under  the  investigations  of  my  assist- 
ant at  Jerusalem.  He  discovered  that  the  jewellers  of  that  city,  at 
the  present  day,  use  a  particular  species  of  brown,  arenaceous  clay  in 
making  moulds  for  casting  small  pieces  in  brass,  etc.  Inquiring  whence 
this  clay  comes,  they  reply,  "  From  Seikoot,  about  two  days'  journey 
northeast  of  Jerusalem."  Here  then  is  a  satisfactory  reply  to  the  ques- 
tion, Where  was  the  "  clay-ground  "  of  Hiram's  foundries  ?  It  is  the  best 
matrix-clay  existing  within  reach  of  Hiram  Abif,  and  it  is  found  only  in 


LAST  IMPRESSIONS.  289 

"  the  clay-ground  between  Succoth  and  Zeredathah ; "  and  consider- 
able as  was  the  distance,  and  extremely  inconvenient  as  was  the 
locality,  so  important  did,  that  master-workman  deem  it,  to  secure  a 
sharp  and  perfect  mould  for  his  castings,  that,  as  the  Biblical  record 
informs  us,  he  established  his  furnaces  there.  I  secured  two  hun- 
dred weight  of  this  clay  of  Seikoot  for  my  patrons,  and  in  addition 
caused  500  cigarette-holders  to  be  made  of  it  for  further  distri- 
bution. 

I  left  the  city  of  Jerusalem  by  the  Damascus  gate,  at  2  P.M.,  May 
14,  1868,  after  exchanging  valedictories  with  my  acquaintances  there. 
These  were  but  a,  few,  for  I  had  come  to  Jerusalem  with  a  far  different 
purpose  from  that  of  forming  the  acquaintance  of  men  and  women. 
My  desire  was  to  shake  hands  with  David;  to  greet  Solomon  face  to 
face ;  to  exchange  grips  with  Zerubbabel  and  Nehemiah  ;  to  bow ' 
reverently  under  the  words  of  Jesus;  to  walk  with  Titus  and  JosepJms 
around  the  Koman  lines  of  circuinvallation ;  to  share  in  the  last 
great  assault  of  Godfrey  and  Tancred ;  in  short,  to  identify  myself 
as  much  as  possible  with  the  past.  Men  and  women  in  Jerusalem 
are  no  better  than  men  and  women  in  Pumpkinville ;  and  the  trav- 
eller whoconsumes  his  precious  morning  hours  or  evenings  in  social 
conference,  is  casting  away,  lightly,  what  thousands  of  the  pious  and 
zealous  of  his  countrymen  would  give  largely  to  enjoy. 

So  I  had  made  but  few  acquaintances  in  Jerusalem,  and  after 
shaking  hands  with  the  good  old  Brother  Peterman  (Prussian  Con- 
sul, made  a  Mason  in  1828),  and  Brother  Charles  Warren,  B.E.,  and 
Mr.  Johnson,  the  American  Vice-Consul  (a  most  estimable  young 
gentleman),  and  my  landlord  of  the  Prussian  Hotel,  I  had  few  othen 
to  say  "  good-bye  "  to,  but  rode  with  a  light  heart  down  the  Via  Dolo- 
rosa  (so  called,  but  no  more  the  Via  Dolorosa  of  Christ's  day  thar 
the  top  of  a  tree  is  its  root],  and  up  the  Tyropoean  or  Damascus  street 
to  the  old  Damascus  gate,  in  whose  quaint  "  winding  stairs "  I  hact 
a  few  days  before  cut  the  Square  and  Compass  so  deeply  that  the 
city  may  be  captured  another  seventeen  times  before  it  fades  out. 
So  I  went  out  into  the  open  country.  My  last  impressions  of  Jeru- 
salem were  like  my  first,  viz.,  that  the  city  is  horribly  misgoverned; 
for  my  servant  Hassan,  lingering  twenty  steps  behind  me,  was  incon- 
tinently seized  by  the  Turkish  soldiers  who  guard  the  gate,  and  by 
the  time  I  got  back  to  his  rescue,  one  red-legged  Zouave  was  holding 
his  horse  by  the  bridle,  and  another  was  unstrapping  my  pack  of 
blankets,  while  a  third  was  abusing  the  terrified  Arab  in  the  foulest 

19 


290  VIEW   FROM  SCOj»tT8. 

vernacular.  At  my  approach  they  released  him,  and  at  my  orderg 
he  rode  on,  while  I  handed  one  of  the  soldiers  a  backsheesh  or  fee. 
It  was  such  a  small  sum  (about  half  a  piastre,  or  two  cents),  that  I 
presume  the  whole  party  united  in  cursing  me  by  Allah  for  my 
meanness ;  but,  as  my  knowledge  of  the  Arabic  tongue  does  not  ex- 
tend to  its  profanity,  and  I  had  no  call  to  give  the  rascals  anything 
at  all,  I  rode  briskly  after  my  party,  and  so  shook  the  dust  of  Jeru- 
salem from  my  feet 

Taking  the  lead,  as  I  did  in  all  pilgrimage  through  the  Holy 
Land,  I  passed  through  the  piles  of  rubbish  that  barricade  the 
northern  side  of  Jerusalem;  the  enormous  quarries  which  have 
turned  one-half  the  hill  Bezetha  into  building  materials ;  under  the 
great  olives  that  tell  their  Masonic  story  of  "the  oil  of  joy"  there, 
from  generation  to  generation;  past  the  old  building  with  an  archi- 
tectural ornament  in  the  south  wall  (which  ornament  I  intend  some 
day  to  procure  for  my  own  museum) ;  past  the  hill  on  the  right, 
wherein  is  excavated  the  wonderful  "  Tomb  of  the  Kings,"  and  so 
through  the  suburbs  of  Jerusalem. 

On  the  hill  of  Scopus  I  pause  to  catch  the  last  and  best  view  of 
Jerusalem.  It  is  by  all  odds  the  best  view.  From  this,  David. 
Shishak,  Pompey,  Titus,  the  Crusaders,  had  gazed  on  the  devoted 
city.  A  day  or  two  before,  I  had  ridden  around  this  hill,  and  scanned 
the  modern  city  from  the  best  points.  The  only  drawback  to  the 
pleasure  afforded  in  my  parting  glance,  is  the  vile  congeries  of  build- 
ings stuck  up  on  the  rising  ground  northwest  of  the  city,  and  called 
the  Russian  Convent.  I  could  not  help  wishing,  "  Oh,  for  one  hour 
of  Omar,  of  Titus,  of  Nebuchadnezzar,  of  any  devastator  of  Jeru- 
salem, to  earn  immortal  praise  by  blowing  that  miserable  structure 
to  the  winds ! "  This  was  my  first  thought  as  I  approached  Jerusa- 
lem from  Joppa ;  it  was  also  my  last  as  I  left  Jerusalem  for  Bethel. 

No,  not  the  last.  One  more  long,  comprehensive  gaze  from  the 
heights  of  Scopus.  See,  all  around  me,  on  every  protuberance  of 
rock,  those  little  piles  of  pebbles— three,  five,  seven,  nine,  eleven,  or 
more — built  up  by  the  hands  of  pilgrims,  who,  like  me,  had  come 
from  distant  lands  to  view  "  the  City  of  the  Great  King,"  and  from 
the  hill-top  caught  their  first  or  last  view  of  Jerusalem.  These  are 
mnemonics  of  Jerusalem.  They  are  like  the  altar  which  Jacob  built 
at  Bethel,  memorials  of  gratitude  to  God  in  view  of  the  accomplish- 
ment of  a  pious  design.  Standing  among  them,  while  my  horse 
stamps,  impatient  to  pursue  his  way,  I  look  down  upon  that  Jerusa- 


THE   NEW   JERUSALEM.  291 

lem  which  I  may  never  see  again.    It  is  all  there ;  Moriah,  with  its 

classical  Dome  of  the  Eock  and  other  edifices ;  the  Damascus  Gate, 

*  ' 

one  of  the  few  architectural  remains  of  the  time  of  Solomon ;  the 
hypothetical  Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre;  the  Tower  of  Hippicus 
011  Mount  Sion,  also  the  Armenian  Convent  and  the  Tomb  of  David 
beyond ;  the  encircling  hills  of  Olivet,  of  Corruption,  of  Evil  Counsel, 
of  Mizpeh,  and  the  noted  places,  Oethsemane,  Siloam,  En-rogel,  etc., 
nestling  at  their  feet;  the  plain  of  Rephaim  in  the  south;  the  moun- 
tains of  Modb  in  the  extreme  southeast,  with  the  sea  of  Sodom  gleam- 
ing at  their  base ;  more  to  the  left,  the  long  range  of  Gilead  and 
Bashan  terminated,  I  know  (although  I  cannot  see  it  from  here),  by 
Hermon,  noblest  of  sacred  hills — is  there  in  all  the  world  such  a 
historical  tout  ensemble  as  this  ?  "  If  I  forget  thee,  0  Jerusalem,  let 
my  right  hand  forget  her  cunning;  if  I  do  not  remember  thee,  let 
my  tongue  cleave  to  the  roof  of  my  mouth ! " 

In  after-years,  amid  the  views,  pleasant  or  painful,  that  meet  my 
aged  eyes,  will  this  vision  of  Jerusalem  ever  fade  away  ?  Eighteen 
centuries  ago  there  was  a  man  of  nearly  fivescore  years,  an  exile 
upon  the  Island  of  Patmos,  banished  forever  from  his  loved  Galilee 
and  Jerusalem,  who  sat  "  in  the  spirit  on  the  Lord's  day,"  and  recalled 
his  memories  of  Jerusalem.  Oh,  but  they  were  enshrined  with  a 
halo  of  glory !  I  shall  read  them : 

"  I,  John,  saw  the  Holy  City,  New  Jerusalem  coming  down  from 
God  out  of  heaven,  prepared  as  a  bride  adorned  for  her  husband. 

"  And  he  (one  of  the  seven  angels  which  had  the  seven  vials  full 
of  the  seven  last  plagues)  carried  me  away  in  the  spirit  to  a  great 
and  high  mountain  (it  might  have  been  this  hill  of  Scopus,  which, 
relatively  to  the  city  below,  is  both  great  and  high;  or  possibly  Olivet, 
half  a  mile  south  of  this,  and  which  is  but  a  continuation  of  Scopus), 
and  showed  me  that  great  city,  the  Holy  Jerusalem,  descending  out 
of  heaven  from  God, 

"  Having  the  glory  of  God ;  and  her  light  was  like  unto  a  stone 
most  precious,  even  like  a  jasper  stone,  clear  as  crystal. 

"  And  I  saw  no  temple  therein  ;  for  the  Lord  God  Almighty  and 
the  Lamb  are  the  temple  of  it." — Revelation  xxi. 

Envy  me,  dear  reader,  the  privilege  of  perusing  this  sublime  and 
inspired  description  of  Jerusalem  while  I  pause  upon  the  hill  of 
Scopus.  Our  ancient  Grand  Master,  St.  John,  could  not  have  mad« 
a  greater  distinction  in  his  Masonic  lectures  between  operative  and 
speculative  Masonry,  than  he  has  done  in  his  apocalyptic  book  be- 
tween Jerusalem  real,  and  Jerusalem  figurative. 


292  THE  WORLD'S  ROAD- BUILDERS. 

• 

Forward  now,  the  North  Star  for  my  guide  for  twelve  days.  For 
ward  to  Bethel,  and  Shechem,  and  Nazareth,  and  Tiberias,  and  Leba- 
non, and — home.  Push  on,  my  bounding  steed,  afld  seek  with  me 
*  fresh  fields  and  pastures  new."  But  who  is  this  sad  specimen  of 
humanity  that,  like  myself,  is  taking  his  last  view  of  Jerusalem  on 
Mount  Scopfus?  It  is  a  Hebrew,  a  Sephardiue  Jew,  an  exile  in  the 
land  of  his  fathers.  Is  it  fancy,  or  do  I  hear  him  murmuring  in  the 
liturgy  of  his  sect,  "  Oh  may  our  Father  in  his  infinite  mercy  com- 
passionate his  orphans  and  gather  his  dispersed  to  the  pure  land  ! 
For  He  is  high  and  exalted ;  He  bringeth  down  and  raiseth  up.  He 
woundeth  and  He  healeth,  killeth  and  restoreth  to  life.  Oh  Lord, 
return  to  thy  city ;  build  up  thine  holy  oracle ;  dwell  in  thine  house, 
and  gather  thy  scattered  flock !  Oh  Thou,  who  renewest  the  months, 
collect  the  saints,  both  men  and  women,  to  the  erected  city !  Oh,  may 
this  month  be  renewed  for  good!  and  may  it  please  God,  who  is 
mighty  in  works,  thus  to  command!"  It  would  be  indeed  a  hard 
heart  that  could  refuse  to  whisper  Amen :  So  mote  it  be. 

Forward  again.  Here  are  memorials  of  the  world's  "road-builders," 
tlie  Romans,  in  this  long  stretch  of  ground,  laid  down  with  squared 
stones  so  firmly  that,  although  the  drift  of  sixteen  centuries  has 
worn  their  surfaces  into  ridges,  they  lie  as  firmly  in  their  beds  as 
when  the  subjugated  peoples  laid  them  here  under  the  edge  of  the 
Roman  steel.  I  have  learned  to  distinguish  these  Roman  roads. 
Around  the  Bay  of  Junia,  near  Gebal ;  between  Beyrout  and  Sidon ; 
at  the  Nahr-el-Kelb ;  between  Sidon  and  Tyre,  and  elsewhere,  their 
solid  masonry  has  spoken  of  "  the  eternity  of  Rome,"  and  the  magnifi- 
cence of  thought  that  caused  all  the  highways  of  earth  to  concen- 
trate in  the  seven-hilled  city  of  Romulus. 

And  here  I  must  be -very  near  "the  Stone  Ezel,"  so  named  in 
1  Samuel  xx.  19,  and  embodied  in  the  degree  of  Secret  Monitor. 
Among  the  good  brothers  and  fellows  of  the  last  generation,  much 
attention  was  given  to  the  degree  of  Secret  Monitor,  or  David  and 
Jonathan.*  It  is  easy  to  prove  that  side  degrees  of  that  nature  were 
more  highly  valued  then  than  they  are  now.  Perhaps  the  reason  is, 
our  old  brethren  were  not  so  rich  in  "  regular  degrees ;"  (the  33  of 
the  Scotch  Rite;  the  96  of  the  Memphis  Rite;  the  155  of  the  Sidon- 
ian  Rite;  the  299  of  the  Children  of  Hatipha;  and  the  various  other 
congeries  of  "ancient  and  adopted,"  "ancient  and  primitive," 

*  A  feeling  of  old-time  friendship  prompts  me  to  record  that  my  first  acquaintance 
rith  that  true  man  and  Mason,  Elisha  D.  Cook,  was  made  through  this  degree. 


THE   STONE    EZEL.  293 

'*  ancient  and  honorable,"  arid  "  antique  and  desirable  "  systems) — I 
say  they  were  not  so  rich  in  these  as  we  of  this  blessed  generation. 

And  the  Secret  Monitor  is  really  worthy  the  praise  formerly 
awarded  it.  Before  the  Odd-Fellows  borrowed  it  ("  the  wise  call  it 
convey"))  and  when  it  was  conferred  with  dignity,  eloquence,  and 
Masonic  zeal,  the  impressions  made  by  its  communication  were  novel, 
sound,  and  good.  I  have  listened  to  its  lectures  as  they  fell  from  the 
venerable  patriarchs  of  the  craft,  and  should  find  it  difficult  to 
suggest  anything  better  in  the  rituals  of  the  Masonic  institution. 

Passing  northward  from  Jerusalem  to  Bethel,  the  locality  of  "  the 
Stone  Ezel,"  which  is  connected  with  the  history  of  the  Secret  Moni- 
tor, comes  under  my  observation.  Shall  I  describe  the  locality  and 
its  surroundings  ?  It  is  a  short  distance  south  of  "  Gibeah  of 
Saul,"  as  the  writer  of  1  Samuel  xi.  4,  terms  it,  and  not  more  than 
five  miles  north  of  Jerusalem.  Gribeah  is  now  called  in  the  native 
parlance  "the  Hill  of  Beans"  (  Tell-el-Ful).  It  is  a  beautiful  rise, 
cone-shaped,  and  commands  a  most  interesting  view.  Three  miles 
to  the  southeast  is  Anathoth  (Anata),  the  birthplace  of  lugubrious  Jer- 
emiah. At  the  same  distance  northwest  the  tower  representing  "  Geba 
of  Benjamin"  is  visible,  near  which  is  the  pass  of  Michmash,  the  place 
of  Jonathan's  greatest  exploit  (1  Samuel  xiv.).  The  rocks  Bozez  and 
Seneh,  it  is  thought,  may  still  be  traced  out  in  this  pass,  although  I 
turned  too  much  to  the  right  to  see  them.  Mizpeh,  now  called  Neby 
Samael,  towers  in  the  west  some  six  hundred  feet  above  the  surround- 
ing plain,  marking  one  of  the  oldest  watch-towers  in  Palestine.  For  a 
long  period  Mizpeh  was  the  national  rendezvous,  where  the  tribes 
met  to  worship,  to  declare  war  and  peace,  and  to  choose  their  king. 
It  must  not  be  confused  with  the  Mizpah  in  Mount  Gilead,  east  of 
the  Jordan,  so  memorable  in  the  hisbory  of  Jephthah. 

Few  places  fill  so  large  a  space  in  Bible  history  as  this  Gibeah,  or 
Hill  of  Beans,  on  which  I  stand  while  contemplating  the  Masonic 
and  Biblical  account  of  the  Secret  Monitor,  but  I  can  only  refer  the 
reader  to  the  proper  portions  of  Scripture  for  a  full  explication.  Our 
Rock  Ezel  stands  at  the  foot  of  the  hill  between  Gibeah  and  Jerusa- 
lem, and  we  will  turn  our  attention  chiefly  to  that.  It  calls  up 
memories  of  two  of  the  heroes  of  the  first  kingdom  of  Israel, 
Jonathan  and  David. 

Jonathan  first  appears  on  the  scene  of  action  some  time  after  his 
father's  accession  to  the  throne.  He  was  then  about  thirty  years  of 
age,  and  was  regarded  as  the  heir  to  the  kingdom.  Like  his  father, 


294  DAVID   AND   JONATHAN. 

t 

he  was  a  man  of  great  strength  and  activity—"  strong  as  a  lion  and 
swift  as  an  eagle" — and  excelled  in  those  war-like  arts  which  made 
his  tribe,  the  Benjamites,  so  famous,  viz.,  archery  and  slinging;  his 
bow,  particularly,  was  never  laid  aside.  As  his  father's  heir  he  was 
always  present  at  the  royal  meals,  and  his  constant  companion  and 
confidant  During  the  king's  frenzy  he  was  usually  pacified  by 
Jonathan's  voice,  and  the  attachment  between  father  and  son  was 
close.  But  the  character  of  Jonathan  was  peculiarly  amiable  and 
susceptible  of  warm  friendship.  This  is  seen  in  the  fight  at  Mich- 
mash  (1  Samuel  xiv.),  when  his  armor-bearer  says  to  him  in  fraternal 
words :  "  Behold  I  am  with  thee :  as  thy  heart  is  my  heart." 

David  first  appears  upon  the  scene  of  action  when  Samuel  visited 
Bethlehem  under  the  divine  impulse,  to  anoint  one  of  the  sons  of 
Jesse  as  king  in  the  place  of  Saul,  whom  God  had  rejected.  He.  was 
fair  of  sight,  comely,  goodly,  short  of  stature,  well  made,  and  of 
immense  strength  and  agility.  In  swiftness  and  activity  he  was  like 
a  wild  gazelle,  and  his  arms  were  strong  enough  to  break  a  bow  of 
steel  In  his  genius  for  music  and  poetry  he  was  never  excelled  by 
Jew  or  Gentile.  In  the  battle  of  the  valley  of  Elah,  David  again 
appears,  this  time  as  the  destroyer  of  the  giant  Goliath.  Saul  now 
commanded  his  attendance  at  court,  and  the  acquaintance  between 
him  and  Jonathan  began ;  a  romantic  friendship  which  bound  the 
two  youths  to  the  end  of  their  lives.  It  is  the  first  Biblical  instance 
of  a  romantic  friendship  such  as  was  afterwards  common  in  Greece 
and  has  been  since  in  Christendom;  such  as  the  ties  of  Freemasonry 
inculcate.  This  friendship  was  confirmed,  after  the  manner  of  the 
time,  by  a  solemn  compact,  often  repeated.  Jonathan,  the  heir  to 
the  Jewish  kingdom,  gave  David  as  a  pledge  his  royal  mantle,  his 
sword,  his  girdle,  and  his  famous  bow  (1  Samuel  xviii.  4).  He  twice 
interceded  with  the  king  for  David's  life,  and  the  first  time  with 
success.  Were  not  our  Masonic  brethren  of  the  last  generation 
justified,  then,  in  their  adoption  of  this  friendship  between  David 
and  Jonathan  as  the  finest  Biblical  type  of  Masonic  attachment  ? 
"  The  soul  of  Jonathan  was  knit  with  the  soul  of  David,  and  David 
loved  him  as  his  own  soul ;"  "  Jonathan  delighted  much  in  David." 
These  sentiments  have  never  been  surpassed  in  pathos  by  the  best 
works  of  fiction. 

David's  life,  as  remarked  above,  was  twice  in  great  peril  through 
the  insane  hatred  of  Saul,  who  had  spoken  to  Jonathan  and  to  all 
his  servants  "  that  they  should  kill  David."  On  the  first  occasioi 


THE   DEATH   OF   JONATHAN.  295 

David  was  advised  by  his  friend  "to  take  heed  to  himself  until  the 
morning;  to  abide  in  a  k secret  place;  and  to  hide  himself."  Thia 
was  "  the  whispering  good  counsel  in  the  ear  of  a  brother,"  of  which 
the  Masonic  lectures  speak.  Furthermore,  Jonathan  proffered  to  go 
witli  his  father  to  the  field  south  of  Gibeah,  in  which  "the  stone 
Ezel "  lay,  and  commune  with  him  there  as  to  his  intentions  con- 
cerning David.  This  conference  terminated  favorably.  Jonathan's 
plea  of  David's  innocence  and  military  services  was  effectual,  and 
the  king  swore,  "As  the  Lord  liveth,  David  shall  not  be  slain,"  where- 
upon David  returned  to  court,  and  all  was  well  again. 

Upon  the  second  occasion  Saul  endeavored  to  kill  David  with  a 
javelin,  whereupon  he  fled  to  Samuel  at  Naioth,  and  from  thence, 
being  personally  pursued  by  the  king,  he  again  sought  the  protection 
of  Jonathan,  saying,  "Truly  as  the  Lord  liveth,  and  as  thy  soul 
liveth,  there  is  but  a  step  between  me  and  death."  At  this  point  the 
circumstances  forming  the  degree  of  Secret  Monitor  more  particu- 
larly come  in.  Let  the  reader  look  up  the  inspired  narrative  in  1 
Samuel  xx. 

With  passionate  embraces  and  tears  they  parted.  The  two  friends 
met  again,  and  for  the  third  time  renewed  their  covenant.  Thia 
was  some  time  afterwards,  when  Saul  was  hunting  David  in  the  far- 
distant  forest  of  Ziph. 

They  met  no  more.  David  went  into  exile  with  his  family  and 
friends,  among  the  Philistines.  Saul  strove  against  the  flood  of  evila 
that  came  over  him  in  his  latter  days,  the  death  of  Samuel,  the  loss 
of  the  divine  favor,  and  the  growing  power  of  the  Philistines,  em- 
boldened by  the  exile  of  David.  At  last  a  national  crisis  occurred. 
The  Philistines  came  and  pitched  in  the  plains  around  Shunem, 
where  I  passed  the  night  of  May  16.  Saul  gathered  all  Israel 
together,  and  pitched  in  Mount  Gilboa,  about  six  miles  eastward. 
The  next  day  the  battle  was  joined  on  the  slopes  of  Israel,  and  all 
Israel  was  smitten.  Jonathan  and  two  of  his  brothers  were  slain. 
Saul,  being  "  sore  wounded  of  the  archers,"  committed  suicide.  The 
third  day  afterwards,  tidings  of  this  severe  reverse  were  brought  to 
i)avi<J.  chen  at  Ziklag,  who  uttered  the  Threnody,  unsurpassed  in 
•  herein  he  says: 

"How  are  the  mighty  fallen  in  the  midst  of  the  battle!      Oh 
Jonathan,  thou  wast  slain  in  thine  high  places. 
"  I  am  distressed  for  thee,  my  brother  Jonathan ;  very  pleasant 


296  THE  MEN   OF   GIBEON. 

hast  thou  been  unto  me ;  thy  love  to  me  was  wonderful,  passing  the 
love  of  woman. 
"  How  are  the  mighty  fallen  and  the  weapons  of  war  perished !" 

The  story  of  the  Secret  Monitor  will  not  be  complete  if  we  omit 
ihut  of  Mephibosheth,  only  son  of  Jonathan.  At  the  time  of  the 
death  of  his  father  and  grandfather  on  Mount  Gilboa,  he  was  an 
infant  of  five  years.  In  the  hurry  of  flight  he  was  dropped  by  hia 
nurse  and  lamed  in  his  feet.  He  was  carried  into  the  mountains  of 
Gilead,  where  he  grew  up  to  manhood.  King  David,  being  by  thia 
time  firmly  settled  upon  the  throne,  sent  for  him  in  pursuance  of 
his  early  covenant  with  Jonathan,  made  him  a  daily  guest  at  the 
royal  table,  and  settled  upon  him  all  the  property  of  his  grandfather, 
King  Saul.  Thus  the  brotherly  covenant  was  maintained,  and  the 
sentiments  of  gratitude  and  honor  firmly  established.  This,  then,  is 
"the  Stone  Ezel,"  and  here  the  degree  of  Secret  Monitor  belongs. 
By  special  request,  I  conferred  this  degree  upon  two  occasions  on 
the  craft  at  Jerusalem,  and  afterwards  in  Beyrout,  each  time  with 
marked  effect  The  degree  is  so  highly  valued  in  America  that  Ezel 
Lodge,  No.  175,  is  seen  on  the  Alabama  register,  and  other  allusions 
to  it  are  found  in  our  lodge  nomenclature. 

Forward  again ;  and  here  is  the  fork  of  the  way,  the  left  hand  going 
by  Gibeon  through  the  passes  of  Beth-boron,  down  toward  Joppa  ; 
the  right  going  northward.  Yonder  is  the  site  of  ancient  Gibeon 
Let  me  at  this  point  read  the  inspired  story  from  the  tenth  chaptei 
of  Joshua : 

"  And  the  men  of  Gibeon  sent  unto  Joshua  to  the  camp  at  Gilgal.' 
That  was  down  yonder  on  my  right,  about  twenty  miles,  as  the  road 
runs.  The  message  was : 

"Slack  not  thy  hands  from  thy  servants.  Come  up  to  UP 
quickly,  and  save  us  and  help  us."  For  the  king  of  Jerusa- 
lem had  joined  forces  with  four  other  kings,  and  had  besieged 
Gibeon,  whose  people  were  the  allies  of  Joshua,  and  had  threatened 
their  total  destruction.  Around  these  green  slopes,  where  the  ripen- 
ing barley  shows  so  yellow  this  afternoon,  was  their  encampment, 
and  this  was  about  the' season  of  the  year. 

'•'  So  Joshua  ascended  from  Gilgal,  he  and  all  the  people  of  war 
with  him,  and  all  the  mighty  men  of  valor.  He  came  up  suddenly, 
and  went  up  from  Gilgal  all  night,"  It  was  probably  at  the  hour 
i  tfore  sunrise,  that  hour  when  deep  sleep  is  deepest,  and  a  panic  is 


THE   DIVINE   CHILD.  291 

the  most  contagious,  and  the  sword  hangs  heavily  in  man's  hand, 
that  the  "  sons  of  the  Lion  "  came  suddenly  up  this  hollow  to  the 
right  (this  Wady  Suweinat,  as  the  natives  term  it,  which  opens  out 
near  Jericho  at  Gilgal),  and  fell,  with  a  great  shout,  upon  the  allied 
kings  and  their  hosts.  What  a  discomfiture !  The  soldiers  of  Adoni- 
zedec  were  cut  off  from  returning  to  Jerusalem,  and  driven,  with  the 
rest  of  their  comrades,  northward  and  westward  by  the  upper  pass  of 
Beth-horon.  Followed  by  the  shouting  and  invincible  Israelites, 
their  headlong  flight  was  precipitated  down  the  terrible  steeps  of 
Lower  Beth-horon,  and  so  into  the  plains  of  Philistia.  And  as  they 
ran  "the  Lord  cast  down  great  stones  from  heaven  upon  them;  and 
there  were  more  which  died  with  hailstones  than  they  whom  the 
children  of  Israel  slew  with  the  sword." 

I  reached  the  village  of  Beeroth  in  three  hours.  The  road  runs 
along  the  flat  water-shed  of  the  country,  the  valleys  descending 
from  it  toward  the  Jordan  on  the  east,  and  the  Plains  of  Sharon  on 
the  west.  The  way  is  paved  with  sacred  memories.  The  history  of 
the  wanderer  who  sought  a  night's  shelter  at  Gibeah  (Judges  xix.) 
embodies  much  of  the  geography  of  this  region.  Samuel  and  Saul, 
David  and  Jonathan,  have  stamped  their  names  upon  these  great 
stones  as  with  an  "  iron  pen  and  lead,  in  the  rock  forever." 

At  Beeroth  I  took  a  cool  draught  out  of  my  gum-elastic  cup,  from 
the  time-honored  fountain,  with  its  cupola  roof,  at  which,  according 
to  a  rational  tradition,  the  parents  of  Jesus  first  missed  their  little 
boy.  Let  me  read  from  a  record  more  reliable  than  tradition : 

"Supposing  him  to  have  been  in  the  company,  they  went  a  day's 
journey ;  and  they  sought  him  among  their  kinsfolk  and  acquaint- 
ance. 

"  And  when  they  found  him  not,  they  turned  back  again  to  Jeru- 
salem, seeking  him. 

"  And  it  came  to  pass,  that  after  three  days  they  found  him  in  the 
temple,  sitting  in  the  midst  of  the  doctors,  both  hearing  them  and 
asking  them  questions"  (Luke  ii.  44-46). 

Though  merely  an  Arab  village,  with  houses  built  of  the  frag- 
ments of  former  massive  edifices,  yet  Beeroth,  or  Bireh,  as  the  natives 
term  it,  has  the  ruins  of  a  once  noble  church  of  St.  John,  whose  pro- 
perty the  whole  village  was.  The  eastern  apsis,  with  the  north  and 
south  walls  of  enormous  thickness,  is  quite  perfect,  and  the  archi- 
tecture exhibits  a  curious  transition  from  the  Norman  to  the  Early 
Pointed,  or  rather,  perhaps,  an  attempt  to  engraft  the  Byzantine  on 


298  PUSHING   NORTHWARD. 

the  latter.  I  did  mt  explore  particularly  this  relic,  but  derive  from 
Mr.  Tristam  these  facts,  and  that  the  capitals  of  each  pilaster  are 
distinct  in  their  mouldings,  no  two  being  alike.  Mr.  Newman  de- 
scribes it  more  elaborately  as  a  beautiful  ruin,  reminding  him  of  the 
rained  abbeys  of  Southern  Scotland.  The  walls,  the  sacristy,  and 
the  apsis  are  yet  standing,  and  inclose  an  area  one  hundred  feet  by 
sixty-three.  The  material  is  native  limestone,  like  the  great  wall 
around  Moriah,  and  is  well-dressed.  The  finish  of  the  architecture  is 
exquisite.  The  apses  are  crowned  with  beautiful  domed  roofs,  the 
partition  walls  ornamented  with  pilasters,  the  capitals  of  which  are 
well  preserved.  The  side  walls  are  divided  into  sections  by  pilasters, 
and  decorated  with  a  rich  cornice. 

How  poorly  these  Fellahin  or  Arab  villagers  compare  with  the 
Bible  picture — these  miserable  descendants  of  a  noble  race,  with  their 
dirty  shirts,  brown  faces,  keen  eyes,  white  teeth,  bare  legs,  and  big 
slippers,  who  have  descended  the  hill-paths  to  see  if  the  Howadjee  has 
any  backsheesh  for  them !  But  this  Howadjee  has  no  backsheesh  for 
such  as  they,  and  so  he  turns  to  the  left  and  leads  his  party  again 
to  the  rising  ground.  On  a  peaked  hill  to  the  right,  a  village  upon 
its  summit,  I  recognize  the  Orphah,  or  Ephraim,  to  which  Jesus 
returned  after  raising  Lazarus  (John  xi.  54),  and  as  I  couple  the  two 
places  together,  Beeroth  and  Ephraim,  I  endeavor  to  unite  in  one 
train  of  thought  all  the  incidents  of  that  adorable  life  that  came 
between. 

And  here  an  altercation  arises  between  my  servant  Hassan  and  a 
native.  The  latter  is  certain  I  can  find  no  place  for  the  night's 
lodging  at  Bethel,  and  advises,  with  all  the  gesticulation  of  a  panto- 
mimist,  that  I  go  to  Ram  Allah,  about  a  quarter  of  an  hour  to  the 
west,  where  the  Latins  have  a  convent  in  which  strangers  are  com- 
fortably provided  for.  .  This  being  interpreted  to  me,  I  point  to  the 
northeast  and  declare  that  Bay  teen  (as  the  word  Bethel  is  pronounced 
here)  is  the  place  of  my  destination  that  night,  and  to  Bayteen  I 
shall  go.  To  cut  short  debate,  I  start  for  Bayteen  by  the  only  path 
I  can  discover  trending  in  that  direction,  and  my  party  follow  me.  A 
pleasant  hour  is  now  spent,  in  which  crowds  of  Jews,  returning  from 
their  annual  visit  to  Safed  and  Tiberias  to  Jerusalem,  and  herds 
of  sheep  and  goats  being  led  to  their  evening  repose,  and  rich  foun- 
tains furnished  with  sculptured  drinking  troughs,  and  crypts  in  the, 
hillsides,  once,  doubtless,  costly  and  elaborate  tombs,  now  filthy  with 
all  manner  of  abominations— pleasantly  mingle  with  the  incidents 


JACOB  AND  THE  LADDER.  299 

of  great  fields  of  wheat,  barley,  and  beans,  an  occasional  glimpse  of 
Neby  Samuel  on  the  left,  and  the  vast,  unbroken  range  of  Moab  and 
Gilead  on  the  east,  and  the  pleasing  uncertainty  of  where  I  am  to 
sleep  to-night.  And  so  I  approach  Bethel. 

If  the  chronologers  are  not  at  fault,  it  is  now  3,629  years  since  the 
fugitive  Jacob,  the  petted  son  of  Isaac  and  Kebekah,  came  flying 
down  this  same  pathway — for  here  pathways  are  never  changed  in 
their  locality,  they  are  landmarks,  and  therefore  irremovable — flying 
as  for  his  life.  A  long  day's  flight  that  erring  man  had !  From 
Beersheba,  past  Hebron,  past  Bethlehem,  past  Jerusalem,  and  now  to 
Bethel,  was  a  summer-day's  journey  of  fifty-three  miles.  An  active 
Arab  can  make  the  distance  to-day,  if  "  the  man  of  blood  "  be  after 
him  thirsting  for  his  life;  nevertheless,  it  is  a  long  way  over  hills 
like  these.  Yet  the  "  heir  of  the  divine  promise  "  accomplished  it, 
and  as  I  ride  into  this  miserable  village  which  represents  ancient 
Bethel,  let  me  read  the  inspired  record: 

"  And  Jacob  went  out  from  Beersheba,  and  went  toward  Haran. 

"  And  he  lighted  upon  a  certain  place  and  tarried  there  all  night, 
because  the  sun  was  set ;  and  he  took  of  the  stones  of  that  place 
and  put  them  for  his  pillows,  and  lay  down  in  that  place  to  sleep." — 
Genesis  xx  viii.  10,  11. 

All  this  is  in  my  mind ;  so  as  soon  as  arrangements  have  been  made 
for  my  accommodation,  with  one  of  the  village  sheikhs  (Bayteen  haa 
two,  as  miserable  as  the  place  is,  the  other  one  at  present  being  at 
Jerusalem),  I  walk  out  to  a  rugged  hill  on  the  north  side  of  the 
town,  where  the  sight  of  some  extremely  large,  rounded  stones  has 
attracted  my  attention.  They  were  truly  "  stones  of  confusion  and 
emptiness,"  huge  limestone  blocks,  bleached  white  by  the  suns  and 
rains  of  centuries,  and  leaving  no  traces,  that  I  can  see,  of  human 
handiwork.  Between  two  of  these  I  lie  down,  gathering  some  of  the 
smaller  stones  for  my  pillow,  and  there  endeavor  to  recall  the 
dream  of  weary  Jacob.  Let  me  read  it : 

"  And  he  dreamed,  and  behold,  a  ladder  set  up  on  the  earth,  and  the 
top  of  it  reached  to  heaven ;  and  behold,  the  angels  of  God  ascending 
and  descending  on  it. 

"  And  behold,  the  Lord  stood  above  it,  and  said,  I  am  the  Lord 
God  of  Abraham  thy  father,  and  the  God  of  Isaac ;  the  land  where- 
on thou  liest,  to  thee  will  I  give  it,  and  to  thy  seed. 

"  And  thy  seed  shall  be  as  the  dust  of  the  earth,  and  thou  shalt 
spread  abroad  to  the  west,  and  to  the  east,  and  to  the  north,  and  to 


300  ALTAR  OF   ADAMS. 

the  south ;  and  in  thee  and  in  thy  seed  shall  all  the  families  of  th« 
earth  be  blessed. 


whither 

will 

thee  of" — Genesis  xxviii.  12-15. 

How  strange!  the  seed  of  Jacob  has  covered  the  earth.  In  the 
distant  West,  from  whence  I  come,  a  number  equal  to  one  of  the 
original  tribes  of  Israel  is  citizenized,  many  of  whom  are  directly 
interested  in  my  errand  here ;  and  I  am  now  looking  upon  the  place 
of  that  memorable  vision  afforded  to  Jacob  which  has  been  realized 
by  the  union  of  earth  and  heaven,  man  and  angels,  in  the  person  of 
the  Son  of  Man  and  the  Son  of  God! 

It  is  a  great  contrast  with  the  subject ;  but  I  cannot  forget  that 
here,  too,  that  strange  and  eccentric  mortal,  G.  J.  Adams  (a  brother 
of  the  Masonic  tie),  came,  when,  on  his  first  visit  of  exploration  in 
the  Holy  Land,  lie  stood  on  the  site  of  Jacob's  Bethel.  Here  he 
devoutly  passed  a  watch-night,  and  in  the  morning  raised  an  altar 
of  unhewn  stone  (I  tried  to  find  it),  upon  which  he  poured  his  ele- 
ments of  consecration  as  a  Freemason  should.  It  needs  not  that  I 
should  excuse  all  the  subsequent  follies  of  the  President  of  the 
American  Colony  at  Jaffa,  to  pay  this  tribute  of  admiration  to  his 
self-consecration  at  Bethel.  Perhaps,  after  all  the  abuse  that  has 
been  heaped  upon  him,  it  was  the  head  in  Brother  Adams  that  erred 
rather  than  the  heart. 

Having  one  hour  of  daylight,  I  walked  around  the  high  grounds 
to  the  eastward  of  Bethel,  and  inspected  many  a  heap  of  stones  that 
had  been  removed  from  the  track  of  the  plowshare,  but,  to  my  dis- 
appointment, found  not  a  chisel-mark  upon  any.  Beyond  me,  to  the 
east,  however,  and  not  more  than  a  mile  or  two  distant,  is  the  moun- 
tain where  Abraham  pitched  his  tent  and  built  an  altar  to  the  Lord ; 
and  there,  three  years  later,  he  stood  with  his  nephew,  Lot,  and 
afforded  to  sacred  history  that  evidence  of  magnanimity  and  brotherly 
kindness  which  make  him  the  model  of  Masonic  nobility  to  the  pres- 
ent day.  I  review  the  record  here : 

"  The  land  was  not  able  to  bear  them  (Abraham  and  Lot),  that 
they  might  dwell  together ;  for  their  substance  was  great,  so  that  they 
could  not  dwell  together. 

"  And  there  was  a  strife  between  the  herdsmen  of  Abraham's  cattle 
*nd  the  herdsmen  of  Lot's  cattle. 

"  And  Abraham  said  unto  Lot,  Let  there  be  no  strife,  I  pray  thee, 


DOGS   OF  BETHEL.  301 

between  me  and  thee,  and  between  my  herdsmen  and  thy  herdsmen, 
for  we  be  brethren. 

"  Is  not  the  whole  land  before  thee  ?  Separate  thyself,  I  pray  thee, 
from  me  ;  if  thou  wilt  take  the  left  hand,  then  I  will  go  to  the  right; 
or  if  thou  depart  to  the  right  hand,  then  I  will  go  to  the  left." — Gene- 
sis xiii.  6-9. 

Crossing  the  valley,  I  re-enter  the  dirty  Arab  village  that  represents 
ancient  Bethel,  and  visit  the  remains  of  a  church  built,  apparently, 
out  of  the  fragments  of  some  more  classical  edifice,  of  which  the 
sculptured  capitals  and  cornices  occasionally  peep  out.  Below 
these  ruins,  and  around  a  plenteous  spring,  are  the  remains  of  an 
enormous  cistern  that  remind  me  of  the  Lower  Pool  of  Gihon,  at 
the  foot  of  Mount  Sion.  It  is  317  feet  by  214  in  area,  and  its  south 
wall  is  entire.  The  women  of  Bethel  are  bringing  from  that  foun- 
tain their  evening  supplies  of  water  in  great  jars,  bearing  them  upon 
their  heads,  and  stepping  as  easily  under  their  burdens  as  a  Broad- 
way belle  does  under  her  microscopic  bonnet.  One  of  these,  a  verita- 
ble hag,  old  and  ragged  and  poor,  stops,  holds  out  her  disengaged  hand 
and  solicits  backsheesh.  This  is  the  only  instance  I  can  recall  in 
Palestine  in  which  a  woman  addressed  a  word  to  me.  I  am  sorry  I 
did  not  give  her  some  money. 

And  now  it  was  getting  dark,  and  I  turned  to  find  my  quarters. 
This  was  no  easy  matter.  All  the  dogs  in  Bethel  clamored  to  con- 
fuse me  in  my  quest.  Eepulsive  in  their  gauntness  and  sores,  these 
curs  of  low  degree  flocked  around  me,  only  keeping  beyond  the  sweep 
of  my  stick.  They  climbed  the  stone-heaps,  the  walls,  the  very  house- 
tops, and  threw  down  their  maledictions  upon  me  as  I  passed.  At 
&  place  where  four  paths  met,  a  group  of  villagers  were  sitting,  ap- 
parently in  council.  But,.surly  and  repulsive  as  their  very  dogs,  the 
Bethelites  scarcely  answered  my  greetings,  not  one  of  them  rising 
to  his  feet  or  expressing  the  least  sign  of  welcome  or  interest. 

The  condition  of  the  village  that  evening  was  at  its  worst.  The 
narrow  lanes,  none  of  them  more  than  six  feet  broad,  festered  in 
filth  and  garbage.  The  night  was  very  warm,  and  the  low  cabins 
reeked  with  humanity  and  insects.  The  house  which  had  been  ap- 
portioned to  my  party  consisted  of  a  single  apartment,  about  twenty 
by  twelve  feet,  a  cellar  being  excavated  under  the  floor  at  one  end, 
in  which  beasts  were  stalled.  My  portion  of  the  room  was,  in  fact, 
a  shelf  directly  over  the  stable.  There  my  blankets  and  traps  were 
placed,  and  while  Hassan  attended  to  feeding  his  three  horses,  I 


302  NIGHT   AT   BETHEL. 

lighted  some  candles,  which  I  had  been  provident  enough  to  bring 
with  me,  and  prepared  my  frugal  supper,  consisting  of  coffee,  sar- 
dines, and  English  crackers.  The  only  thing  in  the  way  of  edibles 
furnished  by  my  host  was  milk  to  accompany  the  coffee.  While  eat- 
ing I  could  see,  through  the  open  door,  the  whole  population  of 
Bethel  watching  my  proceedings.  Supper  being  over,  I  told  Has- 
san to  inquire  if  any  of  the  people  had  antiques  for  sale,  meaning 
coins,  engraved  gems,  pieces  of  carving,  funeral  lamps,  etc.,  which  in 
the  Orient  pass  under  that  generic  term.  Nothing  was  produced, 
however,  except  a  few  bronze  coins  of  the  Roman  period,  and  these, 
with  a  good  quantity  of  the  stone  from  the  old  church,  and  one  hand- 
some petrified  star-fish,  are  all  the  specimens  of  old  Bethel  that  I 
brought  away. 

Expressing  the  wish  to  retire,  my  bed  was  made  up  in  the  follow- 
ing manner,  viz. :  First  a  cloth  of  camels'  hair  was  made  to  cover 
the  entire  shelf  on  which  I  was  to  sleep ;  over  that  was  spread  a 
dirty  mattress,  suggestive  of  fleas  and  other  insects;  over  all  these 
came  my  three  pairs  of  blankets,  carpet-bags  doing  service  as  pil- 
lows. Stretching  myself  on  these,  with  a  row  of  curiously-constructed 
vessels  for  wheat  and  barley  at  my  feet;  the  donkeys  of  the  proprie- 
tor munching  their  grain  vigorously  in  their  stalls  below ;  the  olive- 
oil  lamp,  which  never  goes  out  at  night  in  an  Arab  hut,  burning  in 
a  little  niche  above  my  head;  a  crying  child  and  its  mother  in  the 
furthest  corner ;  and,  finally,  that  indigestible  supper  pressing  upon 
my  conscience  like  a  mountain,  is  it  strange  that  my  dreams,  what- 
ever they  were,  bore  no  analogy  to  the  one  Jacob  had  ?  So  far  from  it, 
that,  when  2  o'clock  came,  tortured  by  the  insects,  choked  with  the 
stench,  and  parched  with  the  heat,  I  resolved  to  leave  Bethel  forth- 
with. Never  was  proposition  more  heartilymet ;  and  in  half  an  hour 
my  party,  consisting  of  two  Americans,  three  Arab  servants,  and  one 
of  the  villagers  to  show  me  the  way,  were  tramping  through  the  nar- 
row lanes  northward,  and  so  passing  into  the  open  country. 

I  had  discovered  before  bed-time,  through  my  servant  Hassan,  that 
the  character  of  these  villagers  of  Bayteen  was  particularly  bad. 
When  I  had  paid  my  host  the  customary  five-franc  piece  at  parting, 
he  let  me  know,  by  indisputable  tokens,  that  he  considered  himself 
underpaid.  The  fellow  who  accompanied  me  out  of  town  claimed 
also  a  backsheesJi,  which,  the  truth  of  history  compels  me  to  say,  he 
did  not  get;  and  by  the  time  I  was  fairly  out  of  the  village,  I  was 
impressed  wiLh  the  apprehension  that  my  little  party  might  be  made 


THE   SYMBOLICAL  DKEAM.  303 

the  subject  of  an  attack  by  some  of  those  scamps.  Luckily  the 
moon  had  risen  and  was  about  one  hour  high.  This  showed  me  the 
way  between  the  great  white  rocks  where  Jacob  dreamed  of  the  In- 
visible, and  awoke,  exclaiming,  "  How  dreadful  is  this  place ! "  He 
who  had  calmed  the  troubled  spirit  of  the  sleeper  by  the  promise  of 
protection,  cheered  me  likewise  by  the  remembrance  of  many  a 
gracious  promise.  So,  arranging  my  little  cavalcade  in  the  best  man- 
ner for  defence  in  case  of  attack,  I  pushed  my  horse  forward,  nor 
ever  slackened  rein  until  the  dawn,  one  hour  later,  showed  me  that 
we  had  passed  Ain-el-Hamareeyeh,  "  the  fountain  of  robbers,"  and 
were  deep  in  the  glens  of  Ephraim. 

This  name  of  Bethel,  signifying  the  House  of  God  (Beth-El!)  is 
embodied  in  the  nomenclature  of  American  lodges  to  a  very  large 
extent.  And  nothing  could  be  more  appropriate;  for  a  Masonic 
lodge  is  so  far  the  House  of  God  as  to  have  the  Word  of  God  wide 
open  upon  its  altar,  and  the  Name  of  God  high  advanced  in  its  East; 
and  it  cannot  be  opened  until  the  Favor  of  God  has  been  supplicated  ; 
nor  can  a  man  take  the  first  step  in  it  until  he  has  openly  declared 
his  faith  in  God!  So  the  following  lodges,  among  others,  are  proud 
to  be  called  Bethel  Lodge,  viz.,  No.  194,  Tennessee;  134,  Texas;  20, 
Oregon ;  24,  New  Hampshire ;  311,  Pennsylvania  ;  G2,  Massachu- 
setts, etc. 

To  establish  the  holy  identity  still  more  closely,  I  write  here  the 
names  of  the  ten  following  "  servants  of  God,"  and  locate  them  at 
Bethel,  thirteen  miles  north  of  Jerusalem,  viz.,  J.  K.  Wheeler,  Rev. 
J.  Hyatt  Smith,  B.  Rush  Campbell,  Ira  Berry,  Wm.  Tracy  Gould,  A. 
A.  Stevenson,  John  Dove,  Wm.  H.  Wood,  Thomas  M.  Reed,  and 
J.  S.  Reeves,  M.D. 

My  cut  of  Bethel  conveys  an  excellent  idea  of  its  general  appear- 
ance, viewed  from  the  southwest. 

As  I  remarked  above,  I  visited  the  site  of  the  old  town  formerly 
lying  "  on  the  east  of  Bethel,  having  Bethel  on  the  west  and  Hai  on 
the  east"  (Genesis  xii.  8),  where  Abram  "pitched  his  tent,  and  build- 
ed  an  altar  unto  the  LOED,  and  called  upon  the  name  of  the  LORD;" 
but  the  place  now  is  barren  and  dry ;  strewn  with  minute  fragments 
of  rubbish,  as  if  literally  ground  to  powder.  Yet  here  occurred  the 
incident  in  the  life  of  Abraham,  already  referred  to,  which  is  held 
memoria  in  ceterna — in  perpetual  memory.  Seeing  at  Bethel  a  man 
fearfully  emaciated  with  a  disease  hopelessly  fastened  in  his  vitals, 
the  words  of  Job  came  forcibly  to  my  mind :  "  His  bone  cleaveth  to 


304 


FAT   VALLEYS. 


his  bone  and  to  his  flesh"  (xix.  20).    The  ladder  which  Jacob  in  his 
vision  saw  at  this  place,  ascending  from  earth  to  heaven,  is  made  use 


BETHEL,   FROM    THE    NORTH. 


of,  in  the  lectures  of  the  Entered  Apprentice,  to  inculcate  one  of  the 
most  hopeful  lessons  that  the  Masonic  system  affords.  As  an  emblem. 
it  has  a  prominent  place  on  all  our  tracing-boards,  and  admits  of 
only  one  interpretation. 

The  finest  tracts  of  pasturage  I  have  seen  in  this  country  lie  east 
of  Bethel,  famous  even  in  the  days  of  Abraham.  The  clear  sky  of 
Palestine  still  gives  an  insight  into  the  starry  system  that  wheels  over 
the  hills  surrounding  Bethel,  such  as  can  be  had  in  no  other  coun- 
try I  have  ever  visited.  The  cool  waters  gush  from  many  fountains 
in  the  vicinity.  The  vine,  olive,  and  fig-tree  give  their  welcome  shel- 
ter in  the  noonday,  and  supply  the  simple  wants  of  the  inhabitants ; 
hut  all  the  works  of  man  lie  in  ruins.  A  few  mud-huts  shelter  the 
people  of  Bethel,  a  population  at  the  most  of  an  hundred  woe-be- 
gone,  poverty-stricken  creatures.  The  little  children  pursued  me 
with  clamor,  and  begged.  Sitting  at  my  meal,  the  whole  village 
seemed  gathered  before  the  door,  to  watch  me  and  count  the  morsels 
t  ate.  My  night's  stay  at  Bethel  will  ever  be  associated  with  memo- 


ABOUNDING   PASTURAGE.  305 

ries  of  filthiness,  squalor,  insects,  moral  and  physical  degradation,  and 
wretchedness. 

My  readers  will  doubtless  recall  the  beautiful  references  made  bj 
Milton  to  Jacob's  ladder  at  Bethel. 

"  Far  distant,  he  discerns, 
Ascending  by  degrees,  magnificent, 
Up  to  the  wall  of  heaven,  a  structure  high, 
At  top  whereof,  but  far  more  rich,  appeared 
The  work  as  of  a  king  by  palace  gate. 
The  stairs  were  such  as  whereon  Jacob  saw 
Angels  ascending  and  descending." 

Meeting  an  armed  courier  galloping  over  the  hills  to  Jerusalem, 
recalls  a  vivid  description  I  have  seen  in  some  writer,  of  one  of  these 
men,  who  was  riding  express  from  Es-Salt  to  Jerusalem:  "He  sat 
erect  and  firm  as  a  statue  on  its  pedestal ;  his  countenance  was  fixed 
and  steady,  every  muscle  and  joint  screwed  tightly  down.  "With  firm 
grasp  he  held  his  cocked  musket  at  arm's  length  horizontally,  and 
dashing  his  heavy  stirrup-irons  into  the  bleeding  sides  of  his  swift 
Arabian,  he  flew  over  the  ground  like  an  eagle  hastening  to  the 
prey."  I  also  met  here  a  sheikh  on  horseback,  who  was  got  up, 
really,  regardless  of  expense.  He  wore  a  red  silk  gown,  scarlet  cloak, 
red  tarboush  with  silk  shawl  tied  round  it,  long  red  boots  and  sash, 
pistols,  sword,  spear  with  handle  which  seemed  more  than  twenty 
feet  long,  pointed  at  both  ends  with  steel.  I  should  say  he  is  the 
best  red  man  I  ever  saw  in  Canaan !  It  is  here  near  Bethel  that  I 
first  enter  the  territories  of  "little  Benjamin  "  (Ps.  Ixviii.  27). 

And  now  comes  the  morning  of  May  15th,  1868.  I  had  left  my 
filthy  abode  at  Bethel,  and  while  the  stars  yet  hung  their  matchless 
lamps  from  the  azure  of  the  Syrian  sky,  undimmed  by  the  approach 
of  Phoebus,  I  had  conducted  my  little  company  through  the  great 
white  rocks  north  of  the  village,  and  so  on  in  the  direction  of  Cyno- 
sure, whose  well-remembered  light  pointed  my  way  northward.  Day- 
light revealed  the  most  highly-cultivated  and  abounding  valleys  I 
had  yet  seen  in  Palestine.  The  flowers  were  yet  abundant,  although 
these  lengthening  days  are  almost  too  much  for  their  delicate  organs. 
The  scarlet  anemone,  cyclamen,  pink  lychnis,  blue  pimpernel,  veron- 
ica, yellow  ranunculus,  and  other  gems  of  God's  own  setting,  afford 
a  rich  field  for  the  collector,  and  made  me  wish  that  I  had  my  old  tin 
box  this  morning,  and  a  holiday  to  fill  it,  instead  of  being  here  on 
horseback,  at  the  head  of  a  party  bent  upon  reaching  Nablous  before 
night.  They  recall  the  lines  of  Keble 

20 


306  SANCTUARY   OF   SHILOH. 

Sweet  nurslings  of  the  vernal  skies, 

Bathed  in  soft  airs  and  fed  with  dew, 
What  more  than  magic  in  you  lies 

To  fill  the  heart's  fond  view  ? 
Relics  ye  are  of  Eden's  bowers ; 

As  pure,  as  fragrant,  and  as  fair 
As  when  ye  crowned  the  sunshine  hours 

Of  happy  wanderers  there. 

About  sunrise,  the  deep  valley  begins  to  open  into  a  plain.  An  old 
Khan,  that  for  many  generations  has  sheltered  wearied  travellers, 
is  now  in  ruins  hard  by,  close  to  a  cool  and  cheerful  spring.  Here 
once  stood  the  ancient  Lebonah.  The  hill-tops,  as  I  can  plainly 
see,  have  each  their  village  perched  on  the  highest  peak,  as  a  better 
security  against  invaders.  On  the  right  hand,  just  beyond  that  rude 
cliff  of  limestone,  lies,  I  know,  the  ancient  Sanctuary  of  Shiloh.  It 
is  but  a  mass  of  shapeless  ruins,  scarcely  distinguishable  from  the 
rugged  rocks  around  them,  with  large  hewn  stones  occasionally 
marking  the  site  of  ancient  walls.  There  is  one  square  ruin,  as  au 
English  brother  (Tristam)  informs  me,  probably  a  mediaeval  fortress- 
church,  with  a  few  broken  Corinthian  columns,  the  relics  of  previous 
grandeur.  This  place  for  hundreds  of  years  was  the  central  rally- 
ing point  of  all  Israel,  equidistant  from  north  to  south  to  the  tribes, 
and  accessible  from  "  beyond  the  Jordan.'''  Here  the  Ark  with  its 
Ix -1\  furniture  was  deposited,  from  about  B.C.  1450  until  they  were 
captured  by  the  Philistines,  and,  although  regained,  never  restored 
to  Shiloh.  As  I  looked  up  these  barren  hillsides,  once  marked  with 
highways  from  every  quarter,  and  thought  of  the  many  generations 
who  celebrated  their  feasts  and  fasts  here  in  the  spirit  of  the  Sinaitic 
Code,  I  compared  the  history  of  Shiloh  with  that  of  the  Sanctuary 
of  Adonis,  near  Gebal,  which  I  had  examined  a  few  weeks  before. 
In  the  facts  of  their  long  holiness  and  present  utter  abandonment, 
there  is  great  analogy.  In  the  next  chapter  I  will  refer  to  Shiloh 
ni^re  at  length.  . 

Passing  a  mile  or  two  further,  I  find  a  congenial  place  to  gratify 
A  crying  appetite,  and  dismount  my  company  to  prepare  coffee  and 
breakfast  It  is  on  the  edge  of  a  luxuriant  field  of  barley.  The 
thorns  for  firewood  are  abundant  Good  water  is  not  far  off.  A 
melancholy  owl  cries  lamentably  upon  a  rock  hard  by.  An  old  Arab 
is  cutting  down  an  old  and  useless  olive.  Very  old  indeed  it  must 
V  if  it  is  useless;  for, as  a  general  thing,  the  older  the  olive  the  more 
jiUnndant  and  delicious  the  fruit.  He  uses  a  primitive  weapon,  com- 


PBOCESSIONS   OF  JEWS.  30? 

pounded  of  hoe  and  axe.  From  the  moderation  of  his  strokes,  and 
the  extremely  andante  movement  of  his  arms,  he  will  be  operating 
at  the  root  of  that  aged  olive  more  than  this  day.  My  breakfast  is 
not  a  gluttonous  repast ;  sardines,  crackers/  and  strong  coffee  make 
up  the  bill  of  fare. 

Remounting  and  passing  northward,  I  enter  the  broad  and  fertile 
valley  of  Mokhna,  passing  down  a  hill  terrifically  steep,  where 
another  ruined  khan  and  village  attract  the  eye.  Here  a  native 
has  taken  advantage  of  the  abundance  of  water  to  irrigate  his  onion- 
beds,  by  draining  a  number  of  small  trenches  and  passing  the  life- 
giving  fluid  from  one  row  of  onions  to  another.  Certainly  I  never 
saw  finer  si  cimens  of  the  Allium  than  that  gardener  is  raising ;  and 
if  the  soldk  's  and  robbers  of  the  country  will  give  him  three  months 
to  work  and  wait,  he  will  have  enough  to  supply  at  least  one  Arab 
village  with  an  edible  of  which  above  all  others  these  people  are  fond. 
The  Syrian  onion  is  mild-flavored,  compared  with  ours,  and  whole- 
some and  delicious. 

Yesterday  afternoon  I  met  quite  a  number  of  Jews,  single  and  in 
companies,  but  to-day  their  numbers  are  greatly  increased.  They 
have  just  been  making  their  annual  visits  to  the  sacred  cities  of  Tibe- 
rias and  Safed,  and  to  the  holy  places,  of  which  Joseph's  "Well,  near 
Nablous,  is  one.  I  am  told  that  they  do  this  every  year.  They  are 
very  civil  to  me,  returning  my  salutations  politely,  and  seeming 
pleased  with  my  respectful  manner  of  greeting.  However,  they 
look  jaded,  especially  the  women  and  children.  No  wonder.  The 
sun  is  threatening  already  one  of  his  fiercest  days,  and  they  are  going 
south,  with  his  broad,  hot  face  to  stare  them  in  their  faces  until  his 
going  down.  I  am  too  much  of  a  traveller  to  let  him  stare  me  in  the 
face.  It  was  to  avoid  this  that  1  sent  my  horses  down  from  Beyrout 
to  Jerusalem,  that  I  might  turn  my  back  upon  the  Great  Luminary, 
as  I  go  thus  meandering  through  the  heart  of  the  land. 

What  a  lovely  valley  this  of  Mokhna  is !  No  wonder  Abraham 
settled  here  on  his  first  coming  to  Canaan.  No  wonder  Jacob  settled 
here  when  he  came  down  with  his  wives  and  children,  flocks  and 
herds,  men-servants  and  maid-servants,  from  Padan-aram.  Although 
the  ground  has  been  cultivated  for  nearly  forty  centuries  without 
manure,  it  yields  all  the  products  for  which  this  country  was  ever 
famous.  Indian  corn,  barley,  wheat,  beans,  vegetables  in  variety 
etc.,  etc.  Although  the  plowing  is  but  child's-play  compared  t< 
ours,  being  a  mere  scratci  three  or  four  inches  deep,  more  like  lia* 


308  JACOB'S  WELL. 

romng  than  plowing,  yet  that  barley  yonder  would  not  discredit  the 
prairies  of  Ihe  West.  The  earth  is  red  or  reddish  brown,  and  very 
friable.  Not  a  tree  nor  hedge  appears  in  the  valley ;  but  a  little 
way  up  the  hillsides,  the  olive,  fig,  pomegranate,  etc.,  are  abundant. 

By  noon  I  turn  from  this  broad  and  beautiful  valley,  square  to 
the  left  hand,  and  looking  up  a  narrower  vale,  I  know  that  I  am 
passing  ancient  Sychar,  Jacob's  "Well  and  Joseph's  Tomb,  while  yon- 
der town,  a  mile  or  two  in  advance,  is  Nablous.  But  now  my  want 
of  sleep  and  rest  the  preceding  night  tell  too  hard  upon  me,  and  I 
can  only  escape  a  threatened  attack  of  fever  by  hurrying  to  cover. 
In  the  hospitable  mansion  of  Rev.  Mr.  Falshire,  a  German  mission- 
ary, who  is  here  in  charge  of  a  school  of  native  children,  I  find  the 
needed  repose,  and  toward  night,  having  had  a  few  hours'  sleep  aud  a 
good  dinner,  I  am  able  to  accept  the  kind  offer  of  that  gentleman, 
and  visit  the  Well  of  Jacob  and  the  Tomb  of  Joseph.  As  we  pass 
down  the  valley  for  that  purpose,  Mount  Ebal,  the  place  of  cursings, 
is  on  my  left,  Mount  Gerizim,  the  place  of  benedictions,  on  my 
right.  When  Jesus  chose  a  hill  near  the  Sea  of  Galilee  for  a  mount 
of  Beatitudes,  was  he  thinking  of  the  greatsceue  where  all  the  beati- 
tudes and  cursings  of  the  Mosaic  dispensation  were  read  aloud  in  the 
hearing  of  the  people  ?  What  a  locality !  I  read  the  appropriate 
passages  as  I  walked  slowly  along,  and  estimating  the  distance 
between  these  parallel  ranges,  satisfied  myself  that  in  this  clear 
atmosphere,  with  the  trained  voices  of  men  accustomed  to  the  voca- 
tion of  shepherds,  every  sentence  could  have  been  distinctly  heard 
from  one  summit  to  the  other.  Still  more  readily  if  the  respective 
spokesmen  took  their  positions  lower  down,  as  it  may  be  supposed 
they  most  naturally  would.  The  popular  notion  that  Ebal  is  a  bar- 
ren mountain,  while  Gerizim  is  fruitful,  is  not  sustained  by  anything 
that  I  could  detect.  Yet  there  may  be  something  in  it,  in  the  fact 
that  the  southern  sun  has  a  full  face  at  the  former,  scorching  his  veg- 
etation with  the  intolerable  summer  heat,  while  the  latter  has  his 
northern  slopes  lying  in  the  shade  during  the  most  heated  period  of 
the  day.  This,  in  process  of  ages,  might  make  a  distinction,  although, 
as  said  before,  I  could  not  detect  it.  Certainly,  the  slope  of  Ebal  is 
more  gradual,  and  it  therefore  bears  more  olive  and  fig-trees  than  the 
bold  cliff  of  Gerizim,  which  is  pierced  with  caves  and  moist  with 
springs. 

I  must  not  forget  to  note  that  Mount  Gerizim  is  adopted  in 
Masonic  nomenclature  by  Gerizim  Lodge,  No.  54,  Louisiana;  and 


MOUNTS    EBAL   AND   GEKIZIM.  309 

Mount  Ebal  by  Mount  Ebal  Lodge,  No.  169,  Georgia.  In  view  of 
this,  and  because  the  Divine  Law  was  promulgated  here,  with  a 
solemnity  scarcely  inferior  to  its  first  delivery  on  Sinai,  I  adopt  it 
among  the  Masonic  localities,  and  join  to  it  the  good  names  of  John 
H.  Anthon,  D.  W.  Thomson,  George  W.  Bartlett,  Eobert  A.  Lamber- 
ton,Thomas  Hay  wood,  W.J.  Bates,  Amos  E.  Cobb,  Clinton  F.  Paige, 
Joseph  D.  Evans,  J.  M.  Gilbert.  It  would  be  a  rich  experience  for 
two  of  these  men  to  visit  here  together,  and,  standing  upon  opposite 
slopes,  half  a  mile  apart,  to  "  read  all  the  words  of  the  law,  the  bless- 
ings and  cursings,  according  to  all  that  is  written  in  the  book  of 
the  law"  (Joshua  viii.  34). 

The  Well  of  Jacob,  as  a  piece  of  human  labor,  is  interesting  in 
itself,  irrespective  of  historical  associations.  It  is  nine  feet  in 
diameter,  and  was  originally  cut  one  hundred  feet  or  more  in  depth 
through  the  limestone.  Its  present  depth,  as  Tristam  estimates  it,  is 
seventy-five  feet,  the  Arabs  having  thrown  in  much  stone  and  earth. 
The  upper  portion  of  the  casing  is  composed  of  stones  squared  and 
neatly  dressed.  I  do  not  recollect  that  there  was  water  in  it  at  the 
time  of  my  visit.  To  find  this  well,  I  was  conducted  to  a  low  mound, 
formed  of  ruins,  surmounted  by  a  broken  wall  inclosing  granite 
columns,  erect  and  prostrate.  At  the  eastern  end  of  this,  the  remains 
of  a  square,  vaulted  chamber  point  to  the  old  "Well-house."  To 
climb  through  this,  down  to  the  opening  of  the  Well,  demands  con- 
siderable agility  in  the  explorer.  Sitting  by  the  opening,  I  read 
from  the  fourth  chapter  of  John  the  memorable  incidents  which 
have  given  to  this  Well  such  a  reputation  in  history,  as  no  other 
water-source  can  ever  have.  And  here  only  can  the  full  force  of 
those  touching  lines  be  appreciated : 

Querens  me  sedisti  lassus : 
Kedemisti  crucem  passus ; 
Tantus  labor  non  sit  casus — 

*'  Wearied  in  search  of  me,  Thou  didst  sit  down  (by  this  well-side). 
Having  suffered  the  pangs  of  the  Cross,  Thou  didst  redeem  me.  Oh, 
that  such  sacrifice  may  not  be  in  vain!"  It  is  said  the  good 
moralist,  Samuel  Johnson,  never  could  read  those  affecting  words 
without  tears.  How  would  they  have  impressed  him  to  have  read 
them  here,  on  the  spot  to  which  they  allude,  as  I  do  now. 

The  sun  was  going  down  as  I  visited  the  Tomb  of  Joseph,  a 
hundred  yards  or  so  northwest  of  the  Well,  and  at  the  southeastern 


A  MISSIONARY'S  WELCOME. 

rner,  so  to  speak,  of  Mount  Ebal.  It  is  a  room  about  twelve  feet 
square,  containing  a  tomb  three  feet  high,  said  to  hold  the  bones  of 
Joseph.  The  room,  or  chapel,  is  well  preserved  beneath  a  roof;  and 
forming  one  of  the  sacred  shrines  of  the  Jews,  its  white-washed 
walls  are  covered  with  pencil-marks,  doubtless  the  names,  in  Hebrew, 
of  the  visitors.  A  luxuriant  grapevine  covers  one  of  the  walls,  and 
forces  its  way  into  the  open  window.  I  secured  one  of  its  leaves  for 
my  collection. 

Returned  back  to  my  kind  missionary,  I  enjoyed  several  hours  of 
the  conversation  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Falshire,  whose  pious  self-devotion 
alone  keeps  them  here.  Their  success  in  the  Master's  service  runs 
chiefly  in  the  direction  of  education.  This  is  the  experience  of  all 
the  missionaries  that  I  meet.  The  natives  do  not  care  much  to  hear 
them  preach  or  exhort;  but  they  are  glad  to  have  their  children  edu- 
cated, both  boys  and  girls,  and  so,  every  generation  removes  more 
and  more  the  barriers  separating  Christians  and  Mohammedans.  In 
many  of  the  larger  towns,  there  are  good  physicians  connected  with 
the  missions,  whose  skill  and  philanthropy  give  them  deserved 
eminence  among  the  mercenary  quacks  who  arrogate  the  title  of 
Hakeems,  or  doctors,  here.  In  this  place,  Nablous,  where,  a  few  years 
since,  Christians  were  openly  stoned  and  maltreated,  a  much  milder 
spirit  now  prevails,  and  this  is  largely  due  to  the  efforts  of  the 
missionaries,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Falshire. 

In  the  evening  I  called  on  Mohammed  Said,  Pasha  of  Nablous,. 
who  had  been  vouched  for  to  me  as  a  brother  Mason ;  but  was  disap- 
pointed to  find  he  was  absent  from  the  city.  I  had  anticipated  a 
pleasant  hour  with  this  distinguished  gentleman.  It  was  from  Mr. 
Falshire  that  I  learned  of  the  recent  publication,  in  Arabic,  of  a  tract 
against  Freemasonry.  The  Catholic  priests,  everywhere  the  opponents 
of  our  system,  finding  that  the  spread  of  the  order  was  enlarging 
the  spirit  of  freedom  and  inquiry  among  this  people  in  Syria,  and 
hearing  of  my  visit,  have  fulminated  in  this  distant  land  the  same 
tremendous  threats  against  the  institution,  "  thrice-cursed  of  the 
Pope,"  that  we  are  accustomed  to  hear  and  despise  in  our  free  lands 
of  the  "West  I  endeavored  to  procure  a  copy  of  this  tract,  but  in 
vain.  It  is  easy,  however,  to  conjecture  the  contents. 

My  cut  gives  an  excellent  view  of  the  two  mountains,  Ebal  (on  the 
right)  and  Gerizim  (on  the  left),  as  seen  from  the  entrance  of  the 
.alley,  near  Jacob's  Well,  looking  west. 

The  route  from  Nablous  to  Zarthan.  as  the  map  will  show,  is  north- 


THE    PLACE   OF   THE   FUKXACF8. 


311 


east.     The  places  are  about  twenty  miles  apart.     The  best  point  to 
leave  the  Jerusalem  road  is,  probably,  Shiloh.     It  was  always  a  prob- 


EBAL  AXD   GERIZIM. 

lem  in  my  mind,  why  the  astute  Solomon  should  have  sent  the  prac- 
tical-minded Hiram  a  distance  of  forty-five  miles  from  the  site  of 
the  Temple,  to  do  the  hard  and  heavy  work  of  casting  the  molten 
sea,  the  oxen,  the  lavers,  pots,  shovels,  and  basins,  so  minutely  de- 
scribed in  1  Kings  vii.  Seeing  that  Succoth  is  not  only  at  so  considera- 
ble a  distance  from  Jerusalem,  but  that  it  stands  in  an  almost  inac- 
cessible district,  a  heavy  descent  of  nearly  3,500  feet,  perpendicular 
height,  from  the  surface  of  Mount  Moriah,  and  demanding  the  con- 
struction of  a  road  through  terrific  defiles  and  along  giddy  acclivities — 
seeing,  I  say,  that  such  is  the  case,  as  every  one  will  testify  who  has 
traveled  the  road  from  Jerusalem  to  Jericho,  why  was  this  place 
selected  ?  Forty-five  miles,  in  a  direct  line,  is  equivalent  to  sixty  in 
a  broken  country  like  this ;  and  the  difference  in  levels  between  Suc- 
coth and  Jerusalem,  up  which  the  Temple  furniture  and  the  enor- 
mous shafts  I.  and  B.  must  be  lifted  by  manual  efforts  alone,  being 
3,500  feet,  it  would  have  been  easier,  some  may  say,  for  Hiram  Abif 


312  CLAY-GROUND   IN   PLAIN   OF  JORDAN. 

to  cast  the  pillars,  etc.,  at  his  own  city  of  Tyre,  and  transport  thtui  to 
Jerusalem,  by  way  of  Joppa,  or  to  cast  them  at  Jerusalem  itself,  than 
to  open  foundries  in  this  desolate  plain  between  Succoth  and  Zarthan, 
grown  up  as  it  is  with  thistles  and  thorns,  the  abode  of  the  wild 
beasts  of  the  Jordan  valley,  at  the  foot  of  precipitous  spurs  of  the 
mountains  of  Judea,  and  at  so  great  a  distance  from  Jerusalem.  Such 
were  my  queries  and  imaginings  when  I  began  the  investigation  of 
this  question.  Before  I  concluded  them,  the  explanation  was  clear.  For 
here,  near  Succoth,  is  an  abounding  water-course  (the  Jordan),  furnish- 
ing its  life-giving  fluid,  both  to  the  workmen  to  drink  and  as  &  power  to 
drive  the  great  blasts  necessary  for  smelting  such  enormous  amounts 
of  metal  as  were  required  here.  Here,  too,  abounded  the  fuel  (wood), 
of  which  great  quantities  were  needed,  and  the  arenaceous  clay  neces- 
sary for  the  architectural  moulds.  This  place  was  accessible  by  a  level 
country  to  the  city  of  Achor  (Acre),  which  was  only  twenty-five 
miles  by  sea  from  Tyre ;  therefore  easily  reached  by  the  laborers.  The 
smooth  road  made  it  practicable  to  transport  the  ores  of  copper  and 
tin  and  the  machinery  of  the  furnaces.  The  only  drawback  was  the 
one  already  named,  the  necessity  of  lifting  the  finished  carvings  up 
those  precipitous  ranges  to  Jerusalem.  But  this  was  only  of  a  piece 
with  the  labor  going  on  at  the  same  time  on  the  other  side  of  those 
precipitous  ranges,  in  lifting  beams  of  cedar  and  fir,  granite  and  por- 
phyry, and  marble  columns  and  other  ponderous  masses,  up  the 
heights  between  Joppa  and  Jerusalem. 

On  the  other  hand,  to  have  established  the  foundries  immediately 
at  Jerusalem  was  practically  an  impossibility,  owing  to  the  scarcity 
of  water,  the  scarcity  of  wood,  and  the  want  of  the  needed  clay. 
Between  the  various  plans,  then,  Hiram  naturally  chose  the  former 
On  "  the  clay-ground  in  the  plain  of  Jordan"  he  erected  his  fur- 
naces  (of  which,  doubtless,  traces  of  foundations  and  the  refuse  slag  will 
yet  be  discovered  by  diligent  explorers),  and  established  a  colony  of 
skilled  draughtsmen,  moulders,  and  foundrymen.  These  he  often  visited 
in  person,  furnishing  the  most  exquisite  drawings  for  his  own  stylus^ 
and  correcting  their  work  as  it  progressed.  He  supplied  the  mechan- 
ical skill  for  forwarding  the  mighty  shafts  up  the  ranges,  past  Shiloh 
and  Bethel,  to  Jerusalem.  Even  the  paved  way,  which  must  necessa- 
rily have  been  made  through  the  gorges  of  these  stupendous  hills,  was 
engineered  under  his  practised  eye. 

A  friend  gives  me,  from  hi  3  private  journal,  this  passage,  viz. :  "  The 
thistles  actually  overtop  tl  e  head  of  a  person  riding  on  horseback 


VILLAGE   OF  SUCCOTH.  312 

through  the  valley  by  Seikoot.  No  such  place  as  Zarthan  or  Zered- 
athah  can  now  be  recognized  ;  but  from  the  different  passages  in  the 
Bible  where  the  word  occurs,  it  may  be  located  not  far  above  Succoth, 
near  the  old  city  of  Bethshean.  The  clay-ground  was,  of  course, 
situated  between  the  two." 

Dr.  Kobinson,  in  Biblical  Researches,  describes  the  village  of  Sei- 
koot thus :  "  Here  is  seen  merely  the  ruin  of  a  common  village,  a  few 
foundations  of  unhewn  stones.  The  eastern  bank  of  the  lower  Jor- 
dan valley  opposite  to  us  was  precipitous,  apparently  nearly  a  hun- 
dred and  fifty  or  two  hundred  feet  high.  The  river  was  running 
close  under  it,  about  a  mile  distant  from  us.  The  water  of  the  river 
was  not  in  sight,  because  of  the  bushes  and  trees,  but  we  afterwards 
saw  it  from  a  point  a  little  further  north.  Mount  Hermoii  is 
visible  from  Seikoot,  and  so  are  Little  Hermon  and  Mount  Tabor. 
Near  the  foot  of  a  low  bluff,  east  of  the  village,  there  breaks  out  a 
beautiful  fountain  of  pure  and  sparkling  water,  under  the  shade  of 
a  thicket  of  fig-trees.  From  this  the  founders  of  Hiram  must  often 
have  refreshed  themselves.  The  region  below  is  full  of  grass,  wild 
oats,  and  thistles,  with  bushes  of  the  Spina  Cliristi" 

Captain  Wilson,  in  charge  at  that  time  of  the  researches  of  the 
London  Palestine  Fund,  in  a  letter  of  March  17,  1866,  describes  a 
visit  to  Sukkoot.  The  name,  he  thinks,  is  applied  to  the  district  as  well 
as  to  a  small  tell  (hill),  on  which  are  some  inconsiderable  ruins.  He 
observed  no  very  marked  features,  such  as  would  answer  to  the  expres- 
sion, valley  of  Succoth,  in  the  Book  of  Psalms.  The  district  is  rich 
and  well  watered.  When  he  visited  Succoth,  it  was  occupied  by  over 
two  hundred  tents  of  the  Sulclir  Bedouins,  then  at  war  with  the 
Adwars.  The  River  Jordan  being  unfordable  at  the  time,  the  fight- 
ing was  confined  to  an  exchange  of  Arab  abuse,  and  a  few  long 
shots  across  the  stream,  in  which  only  some  four  or  five  men  had 
been  killed.  This  incident  illustrates  the  story  of  the  tremendous 
slaughter  which  occurred  here,  under  Jephthah,  three  thousand  years 
ago. 

One  of  the  worst  blunders  in  the  Blue  Lodge  rituals  of  Massachu- 
setts is  connected  with  this  vicinity  (Succoth),  in  the  allusion  to 
"  the  quarries  of  Zeredathah."  There  never  were  quarries  at  Zereda- 
thah  ;  and  if  there  had  been,  it  was  the  last  place  in  Palestine  to  open 
them,  considering  the  difficulty  of  removing  heavy  ashlars  thence  to 
Jerusalem.  Another  blunder  of  some  manual-maker  is  to  represent 
sleeping  Jacob  at  Bethel,  reposing  by  a  water-course;  whereas  Bethel 


314  MARK  MASTER'S  MARK. 

is  thirty  miles  in  a  direct  course  from  the  sea,  and  twenty  from  the 
River  Jordan,  the  nearest  water-course. 

When  Palestine  founders  shall  come  hither  again  to  look  for  the 
best  earth  for  mouldings,  and  master-builders  shall  lay  the  foundations 
for  furnaces,  and  Jordan  again  be  made  to  drive  the  blasts  of  fur- 
naces, as  in  the  days  of  Hiram ;  then,  "  instead  of  the  thorn  shall  come 
up  the  fir-tree,  and  instead  of  the  brier  shall  come  up  the  myrtle- 
tree"  (Isaiah  Iv.  13);  for  after  all,  traffic  is  king. 

From  Lynch's  exploration  (1848),  I  derive  the  following  fact.  At 
the  close  of  the  fifth  day  after  leaving  the  Sea  of  Galilee  (April  14, 
1848),  he  says  the  surface  of  the  hill  behind  him  was  thickly  covered 
with  boulders  of  quartz  and  conglomerate.  Dr.  Anderson  found  the 
remains  of  walls  at  the  summit,  and  one  large  stone,  dressed  to  a 
face,  and  marked  thus : 

It  was  probably  not  far  from  "  the 
clay-ground"  that  the  celebrated  "pas- 
sages" (or  fords)  of  Jordan  were  situa- 
ted. Let  us  examine  the  Biblical 
account  of  Jephthah  in  this  connec- 
tion. He  resided  at  Mizpah,  on  yonder 
hill,  east  of  the  Jordan.  The  Ephraim- 
ites,  who  occupied  the  territory  imme- 
MARKS.  diately  west,  had  conceived  a  bitter 

jealousy  against  him  for  his  great  success  over  the  common  enemy, 
"  the  children  of  Ammon,"  and  had  crossed  the  river  to  put  him  to 
death.  Jephthah  defeated  them,  as  he  did  the  Ammonites  before 
them,  and  drove  them  back  in  disgrace.  «  And  the  Gileadites  took 
the  passages  of  Jordan  before  the  Ephraimites ;  and  it  was  so,  that 
when  those  Ephraimites,  which  were  escaped,  said,  Let  me  go  over ; 
that  the  men  of  Gilead  said  unto  him :  Art  thou  an  Ephraimite  ? 
Jf  he  said  Nay;  then  said  they  unto  him:  Say  now  Shibboleth  !  and 
he  said  Sibboklh;  for  he  could  not  frame  to  pronounce  it  right. 
Then  they  took  him  and  slew  him  at  the  passages  of  Jordan ;  and 
there  fell  at  that  time  of  the  Ephraimites  forty  and  two  thousand" 
(Judges  xii.  5,  6).  It  is  a  curious  commentary  upon  these  para- 
graphs, that  there  is  not  an  Arab  now  living  upon  those  hills,  on 
either  side  of  the  Jordan,  who  can  pronounce  the  word  shibboleth 
in  any  other  manner  than  as  the  Ephraimites  did.  If,  therefore,  the 
ghost  of  old  Jephthah  were  to  take  his  stand  by  this  ford  to-day,  he 
would  be  tempted  to  destroy  the  entire  Ishmaelitigh  population. 


JEPHTHAH'S  HISTORY.  315 

From  an  essay  upon  this  subject  that  I  wrote  for  one  of  our 
Masonic  journals,  I  give  this  incident,  with  some  repetition,  a  little 
more  in  detail. 

THE  FOKDS  OF  THE  JORDAN". 

The  whole  story  of  the  destruction  of  the  Ephraimites,  as  associa- 
ted with  those  important  emblems,  the  Water-ford,  the  Ear  of  Corn, 
and  the  word  Shibboleth,  is  rich  in  historical  and  topographical  de- 
tails. To  do  the  amplest  justice  to  the  subject,  the  reader  should 
have  a  map  of  Palestine  before  him,  and  familiarize  himself  espe- 
cially with  the  situation  of  Mizpah,  the  fords  of  the  Jprdan  nearest 
to  that  place,  and  the  tribe  of  Ephraim  in  relation  to  its  central  city, 
Shechem.  He  should  observe,  also,  where  the  principal  valleys 
(wadys)  are ;  because  all  military  movements  to  and  from  the  Jor- 
dan, both  on  the  east  and  west  sides,  were  necessarily  made  along 
those  valleys,  as  highways  from  the  hills  where  the  towns  were,  and 
still  are  situated,  in  the  interior  of  the  country. 

In  the  first  place,  then,  let  us  see  who  and  what  was  Jephthah, 
the  name  so  intimately  associated  with  this  fearful  slaughter  of  "forty 
and  two  thousand  Ephraimites."  The  account  given  in  the  Diction- 
ary of  Freemasonry  is  so  succinct  and  yet  clear,  that  it  might  be 
transferred  here  with  a  little  compression.  Among  the  Judges  of 
Israel,  Jephthah  flourished  about  B.C.  1183-1187.  In  his  youth,  he 
had  been  driven  by  his  half-brothers  from  Gilead,  the  land  of  his 
birth,  to  Nod,  a  place  on  the  frontiers,  east  of  Gilead.  There,  gather- 
ing around  him  a  company  of  lawless  men,  he  became  known  as  a 
mighty  man  of  valor,  maintaining  a  constant  strife  with  the  Am- 
monites, the  traditional  enemies  of  his  people,  and  acquiring  fame 
and  wealth  thereby. 

At  a  serious  invasion  of  the  country  by  the  Ammonites,  Jephthah 
was  called  upon  by  the  popular  voice  to  be  their  captain,  and  lead 
them  against  the  threatening  foe.  To  this  he  consented.  He  brought 
his  own  tried  band ;  and  summoning  all  the  people  of  Gilead  and 
Manasseh,  those  tribes  that  particularly  acknowledged  his  authority, 
because  they  resided  east  of  the  Jordan,  he  advanced  against  the  Am- 
monites with  irresistible  resolution,  and  overthrew  them  with  immense 
loss.  He  retook  twenty  cities  from  their  hands,  gathered  a  great 
accumulation  of  spoils,  and  inflicted  upon  them  such  a  defeat  that 
several  generations  passed  away  before  the  Ammonites  could  again 
make  head  against  Israel. 

This  was  the  first  act  in  the  Biblical  drama  of  Jephthah's  life,  and 
prove!  him  a  man  possessing  force  of  mind  for  great  undertakings, 
bodily  strength,  and  deep  piety,  which  took  the  only  direction  that  a 


316  THE   UNFBATEENAL  STRIFE. 

man  in  his  age  and  with  his  training  could  conceive ;  for  he  began  his 
labors  for  Israel  by  a  solemn  dedication,  "  vowing  a  vow  unto  the 
Lord."  Having  accomplished  his  earnest  desire,  by  returning  in 
'  peace  from  the  children  of  Ammon,  he  submitted  like  a  brave  man 
to  the  penalty,  though  it  left  him  childless  and  broken-hearted. 
Short  time  had  he  to  mourn.  The  powerful  tribe  of  Ephraim,  west 
of  the  river,  challenging  his  right  to  go  to  war  without  their  co-ope- 
ration, crossed  the  Jordan  at  its  "passages,"  and  advancing  up  the 
defiles  towards  Mizpah,  threatened  "  to  burn  his  house  upon  him 
with  fire." 

The  bold  mountaineer  accepted  the  challenge,  and  a  terrible  con- 
flict ensued  between  those  alienated  sons  of  Jacob.  Each  party  was 
embittered  to  desperation ;  each  fought  bravely.  But  the  Gileadites 
were  in  a  country  with  which  they  were  familiar,  and  with  them  was 
the  victory.  The  defeated  Ephraimites  hurried  down  the  valleys 
to  the  river  in  a^total  rout,  casting  away  sword  and  buckler  in  their 
panic;  only  intent  upon  enjoying  a  draught  from  the  cool  stream, 
and  placing  it  as  a  defence  in  their  rear.  But  this  was  far  from 
Jephthah's  intention.  Accustomed,  in  his  mountain  style  of  warfare, 
to  the  tactics  of  flanking,  as  General  Sherman  practised  it,  3,000 
years  afterwards,  in  a  similar  country,  he  sent  his  reserves,  by  ways 
well  known  to  him,  around  the  flanks  of  the  Ephraimites,  and  pos- 
sessed himself  of  all  the  crossing-places  ("passages")  before  his  enemy 
could  reach  them.  Then  occurred  one  of  the  most  horrible  scenes 
of  slaughter  recorded  in  the  annals  of  civil  warfare.  Forty-two 
thousand  men  were  deliberately  put  to  death  by  the  Gileadites,  not 
a  man,  so  far  as  we  can  understand  the  record,  having  been 
spared ! 

The  exact  locality  of  these  fords  (or  "passages,"  as  the  Bible 
terms  them)  cannot  now  be  designated,  but  most  likely  they  were 
those  nearly  due  east  of  Seikoot,  and  opposite  Mizpah.  At  these  fords, 
in  summer-time,  the  water  is  not  more  than  three  or  four  feet  deep, 
the  bottom  being  composed  of  a  hard  limestone  rock.  If,  as  some 
think,  the  fords  thirty  miles  higher  up  are  those  referred  to,  the  same 
description  will  apply.  At  either  place,  the  Jordan  is  about  eighty 
feet  wide,  its  banks  encumbered  by  a  dense  growth  of  tamarisks, 
cane,  willows,  thorn-bushes,  and  other  low  vegetation  of  the  shrub- 
by and  thorny  sorts,  which  make  it  difficult  even  to  approach  the 
margin  of  the  stream.  The  Arabs  cross  the  river  at  the  present 
day.  at  stages  of  low  water,  at  a  number  of  fords,  from  the  one  near 


SHIBBOLETH:  SIBBOLETH.  311 

the  point  where  the  Jordan  leaves  the  Sea  of  Galileo,  down  co  the 
Pilgrims'  Ford,  six  miles  above  the  Dead  Sea. 

A  word  here  in  relation  to  Shibboleth,  so  intimately  associated  with 
the  fords  of  the  Jordan.  This  word,  in  Hebrew,  primarily  implies  a 
flood  or  stream.  It  was,  hence,  naturally  suggested  to  the  followers 
of  Jephthah,  when,  having  established  themselves  in  the  rear  of  the 
enemy,  they  sought  to  distinguish  the  foe  through  their  known 
inability  to  utter  the  aspirated  sound  sh.  The  fugitives,  instead  of 
sh,  gave  the  unaspirated  sound  s,  wherefore  they  were  slain  without 
mercy.  The  certainty  which  the  Gileadites  felt  that  the  Ephraimites 
could  not  give  that  sound  correctly  is  very  remarkable,  and  strongly 
illustrates  the  variety  of  dialects  which  had  already  risen  in  Israel. 
If  what  is  here  mentioned  as  the  characteristic  would  not  have  been 
sufficiently  discriminating  as  a  test,  Jephthah  certainly  would  not 
have  selected  it.  It  was  a  curious  subject  of  reflection  that  occurred 
to  me,  as  I  passed  along  towards  Shechem  (Nablous),  not  far  from 
these  fords,  that  among  all  the  tribes  of  the  natives  who  inhabit  the 
country  now,  there  is  not  on  either  side  of  the  Jordan  a  person  who 
pronounces  the  word  as  Jephthah  did!  All  would  say  Sibboleth> 
or  rather  Sibboleen,  just  as  they  say  Bay  teen  instead  of  Bethel,  and 
Seiloon  instead  of  Shiloh.  If  the  different  tribes  had  in  reality 
acquired  such  differences  in  dialect  in  only  three  hundred  years  from 
the  days  of  Moses  and  Joshua,  it  illustrates  what  the  traveller  will 
see  every  day  in  that  country,  viz.,  that  the  Jews  now  speak  as  many 
languages  as  there  are  countries  in  which  they  are  spread  abroad. 
The  word  Sibboleth  also  means  an  ear  of  corn,  and  (symbolically) 
plenty ;  and  one  tradition  has  it  that  an  object  of  that  sort  was 
suspended  from  a  branch  near  the  river,  and  that  the  test  of  the 
Ephraimite  was  to  point  to  that  and  ask  him  what  it  was.  The  reply, 
of  course,  led  to  the  tribal  detection.  Any  other  word  commencing 
with  sh,  however,  would  have  served  the  same  purpose,  the  reason  for 
adopting  this  being  that  it  meant  food,  drink,  and  security  all  in 
one,  those  three  things  for  which  the  panting  fugitives  were  striving 
at  the  close  of  that  awful  battle-day. 

Almost  every  portion  of  this  celebrated  river  of  antiquity,  the 
Jordan,  is  associated  with  some  one  or  more  of  the  Masonic  legends. 
In  the  Order  of  High-Priests,  by  a  pleasing  coincidence,  we  have  a 
narration  which  connects  the  head  of  the  stream  with  its  mouth.  In 
its  rituals,  commencing  at  Sodom,  on  the  southern  verge  of  the  Jor- 
dan valley,  we  accompany  the  Father  of  the  Faithful  in  his  chival- 


318  THE   BITER  JORDAN. 

rous  essay  to  the  town  of  Dan,  hard  by  the  fountain-head  of  the 
etream.  The  degree  of  Fellow-Craft  leads  us  to  "the  clay-ground 
between  Succoth  and  Zarthan ;"  also  to  the  fords,  at  which  the  slaugh- 
ter of  the  cruel  and  presumptuous  Ephrairaites  was  accomplished. 
Subsequent  degrees  refer  to  other  portions  of  the  streams,  and  thua 
the  whole  river  is  comprised  within  Masonic  geography.  In  fact, 
according  to  the  theory  of  Dr.  Oliver,  one  of  the  earliest  emblems  in 
the  Entered  Apprentice's  degree  suggests  the  crossing  of  the  Jordan 
by  Joshua  and  his  host,  near  the  mouth  of  the  river. 

It  is  useless  to  add,  that  in  all  Christian  systems  the  Jordan  plays 
a  prominent  part.  The  baptism  of  Jesus  occurred  there.  In  his 
mission  of  mercy  and  divine  favor  he  frequently  crossed  this  river. 
Some  of  his  most  striking  miracles  were  performed  near  by  its  banks. 
It  would  be  impossible,  therefore,  to  separate  this  remarkable  stream 
from  our  ideas  of  Christ,  even  though  the  hymnologists  of  the  Chris- 
tian system  had  not  so  often  used  it  as  their  most  fitting  emblem  of 
the  Stream  of  Death,  that  separates  our  barren  and  desolate  Modb 
from  the  fruitful  and  cheerful  Canaan  which  we  seek.  How  glori- 
ously good  old  Isaac  Watts  of  our  youth  has  done  this,  it  needs  but 
a  stanza  to  prove : 

"  Sweet  fields,  beyond  the  swelling  flood, 

Stand,  dressed  in  living  green ; 
So,  to  the  Jews,  old  Canaan  stood, 
"While  Jordan  rolled  between ! " 

Or  this  one  more  verse,  from  another  author: 

"  Could  we  but  stand  where  Moses  stood, 

And  view  the  landscape  o'er, 
Not  Jordan's  stream,  nor  death's  dark  flood, 
Should  fright  us  from  the  shore!" 

I  cannot  resist  the  temptation  to  give  place  here  to  John  Buuyan, 
and  then  I  will  conclude.  Was  ever  symbol  so  clothed  with  verity  ? 
"  Now  I  further  saw  that  betwixt  them  and  the  gate  was  a  river,  but 
there  was  no  bridge  to  go  over.  The  river  was  very  deep.  At  the 
sight,  therefore,  of  this  river,  the  pilgrims  were  much  stunned,  but 
the  men  that  went  with  them  said,  You  must  go  through  or  you 
cannot  come  at  the  gate.  They  then  addressed  themselves  to  the 
water."  The  whole  passage  is  equally  affecting.  As  I  rode  down 
from  Jerusalem  to  the  Jordan,  one  hot  morning  in  May,  1868,  I 
asked  my  servant  by  what  name  the  stream  is  known  to  the  natives, 
He  replied  Esh-Shereeyah,  meaning  the  Place  of  Watering.  Some 


MASONIC   NOMENCLATIVE.  319 

of  the  Arabs  add  the  word  Great  (El-KeUr)  to  that,  to  denote  its 
relative  importance  in  the  scale  of  streams. 

The  place  of  the  clay-ground  is  marked  in  Masonic  nomenclature 
by  ZeredatJiah  Lodge,  No.  83,  Georgia ;  No.  483,  New  York,  etc.  The 
name  of  the  river  is  given  in  Jordan  Lodge,  No.  184,  North  Carolina ; 
No.  386,  New  York;  No.  47,  Massachusetts;  No.  237,  England,  etc. 
To  .establish  the  identity  even  more  closely,  I  write  upon  the  place  of 
the  foundries  ten  Masonic  names,  viz.,  Philip  C.  Tucker,  J.  B. 
Bradwell,  George  H.  Raymond,  L.  Bradford  Prince,  William  R. 
Clapp,  Alfred  Creigh,  S.  B.  Olney,  M.D.,  E.  H.  Hamilton,  J.  P. 
Sanford,  William  C.  Preble.  And  for  the  locality  of  the  "  passages,"  or 
fords  of  the  Ephraimites,  I  give  the  ten  following,  viz.,  A.  G.  Goodall, 
Charles  Griswold,  Charles  D.  Greene,  Sylvester  Stevens,  Reeves  E. 
Selmes,  Robert  Morris,  Jr.,  John  Thompson,  Charles  Eginton,  Henry 
R.  Cannon,  G.  B.  Cooley. 


PTOLEMY   PHILADELPHUS :   ARSINOE-BEBEtflCB 


CHAPTER  XX. 

JTTBISDICTION  J   OR,  THE  DIVISION   OF  THE  TBIBE8. 

HILOH  is  a  place  memorable  on  the  rolls  of  American 
lodges,  as  witness,  Shiloh  Lodge,  No.  131,  Louisiana ;  No 
202,  Tennessee ;  No.  105,  Alabama,  and  others.  In  that 
portion  of  Masonic  history  which  relates  to  the  Ark  of 
Moses,  its  construction  and  various  "  resting-places,"  Shiloh 
assumes  a  prominent  place;  for  here,  and  not  at  Jerusalem,  was  the 
Tabernacle  set  up,  about  B.C.  1550,  and  the  Ark  of  the  Covenant  placed, 
and  the  Sacred  Garments  preserved.  Here,  and  not  at  Jerusalem, 
was  established  the  Colony  of  Priests,  with  the  High-Priest  at  their 
head ;  and  here,  for  several  centuries,  was,  in  fact,  the  centre  of  the 
Jewish  worship.  It  was  at  Shiloh  that  Eli  died  and  Samuel  prophe- 
sied through  his  whole  life. 

But  that  which  most  practically  unites  Shiloh  with  the  Masonic 
history,  is  the  fact  that  here  the  subject  of  jurisdiction,  which  plays 
BO  important  a  part  in  the  American  system  of  jurisprudence,  was 
established,  its  laws  laid  down,  and  all  the  details  organized.  'The 
manner  of  doing  this,  and  dividing  out  the  land  of  Canaan  among 
the  tribes,  was  so  curious  thaf  I  devote  a  chapter  to  the  subject. 

The  names  of  places  in  the  Holy  Land  have  been  wonderfully 
preserved,  some  of  them  for  four  thousand  years.  I  was  often 
startled  when,  pointing  to  a  place  and  asking  its  name,  my  guide 
would  answer  in  the  same  word  that  Paul  might  have  used,  or  David, 
or  Jacob.  The  principal  change  in  the  words  is  that  of  pronuncia- 
tion only,  which  is  no  greater  than  may  be  noticed  when  a  foreigner 
endeavors  to  pronounce  the  name  of  a  place  in  a  strange  country. 
Thus,  for  instance,  they  call  Bethel,  Bayteen ;  Bethlehem,  Batelame ; 
Jericho,  Reha ;  Joppa,  Jaffa ;  Nazareth,  Nazaret  Shiloh,  Seiloon ; 
Shunem,  Solan;  Sidon,  Saida;  Sodom,  Usdom;  Succoth,  Seikoot- 
Tiberias,  Tiberceyah ;  Tyre,  Tsur,  etc. 


THE    DRAWING   OF   THE 


32: 


On  the  other  hand,  there  are  many  names  pronounced  exactly  as 
we  have  them  in  our  English  Bible,  such  as  Carmel,  Gaza,  Hebron, 
Kana,  Nain,  and  the  like.  To  look  for  Shiloh,  then,'  you  must 


THE  RUINS  OF  ANCIENT  GERASA. 


inquire  for  Seiloon;  where,  when  God  had  presented  the  land  to  his 
people,  they  divided  it,  and  afterwards  conquered  it  at  the  edge  of 
the  sword.  But  this  once  great  and  armed  city  is  now  but  a  dry 
pasture,  barely  supporting  a  few  flocks  that  lie  down,  and  none  to 
make  them  afraid.  My  cut  gives  a  positive  idea  of  its  present 
appearance. 

And  now,  let  us  together  visit  Shiloh,  if  but  in  fancy,  and  witness 
the  great  lan^-distribution,  the  grand  and  famous  lottery  of  the 
early  ages.  While  camping  upon  those  bleak  hills,  let  us  recall  what 
befell  the  people  of  Jehovah  on  that  day  when  they  put  to  t/ie  lot  the 
important  question  of  a  division  of  the  land  among  the  twelve  tribes. 
Viewing  this  transaction  by  modern  light,  it  seems  almost  blasphfv 

21 


MANNER   OF  THE   DRAWING. 

mous.     But  not  so  did  the  chosen  of  the  Almighty  view  it.    Not  so 
the  happy  apostles  on  their  return  from  Olivet  and  the  Ascension, 


SHILOH,   IN  THE  TIME   OF   SAMUEL. 

when  they  cast  lots  to  fill  the  vacancy  made  by  the  terebinth-tree  and 
the  cord.  The  use  of  lots  among  the  Hebrews  was  general.  It  was 
used  by  them  as  an  appeal  to  God,  free  from  passion  and  selfishness. 
The  very  word  used  for  lot  (sors)  implies  an  oracular  response.  So, 
too,  the  wisest  of  the  heathen  considered  it.  In  the  combat,  the  lot 
decided  priority  in  attack,  position,  etc.,  as  now  among  duelists.  The 
appointment  of  magistrates  and  jurymen  was  settled  in  the  same 
way.  Also  the  division  of  conquered  land,  etc.,  as  here. 

Among  the  Jews,  the  method  of  casting  lots  is  not  given  in  the 
Scriptures  ;  but  the  Rabbinical  writings  profess  to  describe  it  thus: 
Two  inscribed  tablets  of  boxwood,  or  gold,  were  put  into  an  urn, 
which  was  shaken,  and  the  lots  drawn  out  The  affecting  account  of 


THE   GEA1STD   SCENE.  323 

the  discovery  of  Achan  will  occur  to  the  reader,  as  given  in  Joshua, 
seventh  chapter. 

And  now  for  our'JFamous  Lottery  at  Shiloh.  First,  let  us  examine 
and  sketch  the  place  itself.  Eude  and  ruinous  as  it  now  is,  it  prob- 
ably looks  much  as  it  did  when  the  hosts  of  Israel  first  clambered 
up  these  steep  wadys  (valleys),  and  took  possession  of  it  in  the 
strength  of  God.  It  stands  just  where  the  writer  in  Judges  xxi.  19 
locates  it,  "  on  the  north  side  of  Bethel,  on  the  east  side  of  the  high- 
way that  goeth  up  from  Bethel  to  Shechem,  and  on  the  south  of 
Lebonah."  All  three  of  those  places  are  now  perfectly  identified, 
and,  consequently,  Shiloh.  If  the  sacred  geographer  had  located  all 
Hebrew  towns  with  the  same  precision,  no  country  in  the  world 
would  have  presented  fewer  obscurities  in  topographical  details- 
Here  it  is,  about  six  miles  northeast  of  Bethel,  exactly  as  we  should 
•expect  after  reading  the  book  of  Judges. 

A  small  hill  rises  from  an  uneven  plain,  surrounded,  much  like  Jeru- 
salem itself,  by  other  small  hills,  except  on  the  south,  where  there  is 
a  narrow  valley.  The  Tabernacle  once  occupied  the  crown  of  this 
modest  eminence ;  and  there,  too,  is  the  modern  village,  if  indeed, 
so  small  a  collection  of  huts  deserves  the  name  of  village.  A  noble 
oak  overshadows  a  Mohammedan  church,  and  close  by  here  is  a 
ruined  edifice,  either  a  church  that  has  served  as  a  fort,  or  a  fort  that 
has  served  as  a  church — it  is  difficult  to  say  which.  About  a  mile 
from  this,  eastward,  is  a  copious  fountain,  whose  waters  are  collected 
into  a  large  reservoir,  watering  flocks  and  herds.  The  hills  over- 
hanging the  fountain  are  pierced  with  sepulchres,  which  tradition 
has  attributed  to  Eli  and  his  priestly  sons. 

When  the  land  was  subjugated,  when  the  great  contest  at  the 
waters  of  Merom  had  placed  all  Canaan  in  the  possession  of  the  con- 
queror, here  to  this  little  hill  the  Tabernacle  was  brought  from  Gil- 
gal,  near  Jericho,  and  here  it  was  set  up,  its  elaborate  furniture  in 
place,  its  curtains  drawn  around.  Upon  the  surrounding  eminences, 
doubtless,  the  various  tribes  pitched  their  tents,  and  awaited  the 
decision  of  Jehovah  as  to  their  future  allotments.  Sitting  under 
this  fine  oak,  to-day,  let  us  spread  out  our  map  of  Palestine  upon 
this  carved  fragment  of  marble,  once  a  portion  of  a  Corinthian  cap- 
ital, and  contemplate  the  strange  event. 

Reuben  had  received  his  share  already.  In  the  long  pilgrimage 
through  the  desert  his  place  had  been  on  the  south  side  of  the  Tab- 
ernacle. His  tribal  standard,  the  Deer,  had  been  set  up  in  the  moun- 


324  SURVEYING  THE  TERRITORY. 

tains  of  Moab,  as  the  great  caravan  passed  through ,  and  when  the 
moment  for  entering  the  Promised  Land  arrived,  this  tribe  had 
asked  that  possession  should  be  given  to  it,  even  in  those  mountains, 
and  where  they  had  sojourned.  This  was  done ;  "  The  border  of  the 
children  of  Eeuben  was  Jordan.  .  .  .  Their  coast  was  from 
Aroer  that  is  on  the  bank  of  the  River  Arnon." 

Gad  had  likewise  chosen  his  own  possession  east  of  the  river.  In 
the  great  wilderness-march  he  had  gone  side  by  side  with  Reuben, 
and  together  they  had  settled  in  the  rich  pasturage  of  the  Mishor. 
So,  too,  with  Manasseh.  Marching  with  Ephraim  and  Benjamin  in 
the  west  of  the  great  procession,  he  had  become  fascinated  with  con- 
quest, and  "because  he  was  a  man  of  war  "  he  concluded  to  retain  the 
"  sixty  great  cities  "  east  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee,  captured  by  his  sons. 
Judah,  also,  had  been  awarded  a  possession  west  of  the  Dead  Sea,  and 
Ephraim  in  the  central  parts  of  Canaan. 

Seven  of  the  tribes  were  yet  to  receive  an  inheritance ;  and  here  in 
this  long,  narrow,  spiral  range  of  mountains,  extending  from  Dan 
to  Beersheba,  we  see  the  prizes  for  which  the  Great  Lottery  was 
opened  at  Shiloh :  "  By  lot  was  their  inheritance,  as  the  Lord  com- 
manded by  the  hand  of  Moses."  In  the  fifteenth  to  the  seventeenth 
chapters  of  Joshua  the  momentous  work  is  recorded.  From  this  place, 
Shiloh,  where  "  the  whole  congregation  of  the  children  of  Israel  had 
assembled  together,"  Joshua  first  sent  out  a  practical  committee  of 
surveyors,  "  three  for  each  tribe,"  with  the  charge,  "  Go  and  walk 
through  the  land  and  describe  it,  and  come  again  to  me  that  I  may 
here  cast  lots  for  you  before  the  Lord  in  Shiloh."  And  "the  men 
went  and  passed  through  the  land,  and  described  it  by  cities  into 
seven  parts,  in  a  book,  and  came  again  to  Joshua,  to  the  hosts  at  Shi- 
loh." Doubtless,  the  general  imparted  to  these  surveyors  his  own 
recollections  of  forty-five  years  previous,  when  he,  as  one  of  the  com- 
mittee of  twelve,  was  sent  by  Moses  "  to  spy  out  the  land  of  Canaan." 
So,  too,  the  aged  Caleb  made  himself  useful  in  counselling  these 
"  prospectors  "  in  their  forty  days'  work. 

And  "  the  men  went  and  passed  through  the  land,  and  described  it 
by  cities  into  seven  parts,  in  a  book,  and  came  again  to  Joshua,  to  the 
hosts  at  Shiloh."  These  parts  were  for  Benjamin,  Simeon,  Zebulun, 
Issachar,  Asher,  Xaphtali,  and  Dan.  Probably  the  names  of  these 
seven  tribes  were  inscribed  upon  tesserae  and  placed  in  an  urn  ;  while 
the  numbers  one  to  seven,  inscribed  in  the  same  manner,  were  placed 
in  another  urn.  Then  Joshua  himself,  as  the  immediate  representa- 


DRAWING   THE   LOT   OF   BENJAMIN".  325 

tive  of  the  nation,  drew  them  out  one  by  one,  and  called  the  namea 
It  is  easy  to  conceive  that  high  religious  solemnities  accompanied 
the  act — prayers,  incense,  sacrifices.  The  chiefs  of  the  nine  tribes, 
as  guardians  of  the  personal  interests  of  their  respective  divisions, 
stood  near,  all  but  "  Nahshon  the  son  of  Aminadab,"  who  was  over 
the  host  of  Judah,  and  "Elishama  the  son  of  Ammihud,"  who  was 
over  the  host  of  "Ephraim.  These  two  tribes,  having  already  secured 
their  portions,  were  less  interested. 

As  we  sit  here  earnestly  poring  over  the  map  (Rawson's  is  the  best  for 
our  purpose),  the  whole  business  seems  plain.  The  six  heathen  nations, 
with  their  thirty-one  kings,  lay  with  bleaching  bones  upon  the  hill- 
sides and  plains  of  the  land  which  they  had  seized  when  Jacob  and 
his  family  followed  Joseph  into  Egypt,  261  years  before.  Small  de- 
tachments of  their  armies,  however,  still  wandered  in  deserts  and 
inaccessible  places;  a  few  of  the  stronger  fortresses,  we  know,  were 
still  held  by  them.  Possibly  from  yonder  eminence  of  Rimmon, 
twelve  miles  in  the  southeast,  one  of  these  bands  may  have  been 
gazing  with  despairing  hearts  upon  their  great  enemy,  engaged  in 
the  very  act  of  confiscating  houses,  fields,  cities,  plains,  and  grave- 
yards. It  is  very  probable  that  upon  the  mountain -sides,  thirty  miles 
eastward,  detachments,  hidden  in  caves  and  among  the  thick  oak 
forests,  witnessed  the  scene  that  day,  and  cursed  the  hosts  of  Jehovah 
in  the  name  of  their  God,  Baal. 

And  now,  amidst  the  blast  of  trumpets,  comes  forth  the  first  lot.  Ft 
is  that  small  but  beautiful  tract,  a  parallelogram  of  twelve  by  twenty 
six  miles,  that  lies  immediately  north  of  Judah,  and  embracing  Jerusa- 
lem, Bethel,  and  Beth-horon.  "  Jordan  was  the  border  of  it  on  the  east 
side."  "  The  stone  of  Bohan,  the  son  of  Reuben,"  was  one  of  the 
landmarks  on  the  line  of  it  next  to  Judah.  "  The  well  En-Rogel," 
"The  wilderness  of  Beth-horon,"  "The  well  of  waters  of  Nephtoah," 
and  other  noted  places,  were  marks  along  its  boundaries.  Its  situa- 
tion was  highly  favorable.  The  smallness  of  the  territory,  as  Jose- 
phus  affirmed,  1,500  years  afterwards,  was  compensated  by  the  excel- 
lence of  the  land. 

To  whom  is  this  lot  ?  Silently  the  majestic  warrior  who  had  lifted 
up  his  spear  over  Ai,  and  again,  in  the  sight  of  all  Israel,  at  Gibeon, 
turned  to  the  second  urn  and  drew  forth  the  name  of — Benjamin ! 
To  Elidad,  the  son  of  Chislon,  the  matter  was  intrusted;  for  he  was 
the  chosen  one  of  Benjamin,  named  to  Moses  by  the  Lord  Jehovah 
himself  as  one  of  those  who  should  "  divide  the  land."  Thus  Benja 


32G  SIMEON:  ZEBULUN:  ISSACHAB,  ETC. 

min,  whose  place  in  the  wilderness  had  been  on  the  west  of  the  Taber- 
nacle with  Ephraim  and  Manasseh,  was  established  in  Canaan,  next 
south  of  Ephraim.  There  his  tribal  standard,  the  Wolf,  was  set  up. 
Yonder  eminence  of  Mizpah  was  his ;  yonder  conic  hill,  Rimmonr 
was  his.  As  we  sit  here,  all  that  line  of  summits  to  the  south 
formed  a  portion  of  the  first  lot,  which  fell  to  Benjamin. 

And  lo,  the  blast  of  trumpets  announces  the  bringing  forth  of  iht 
second  lot.  It  is  a  district  on  the  southwest  of  Judah,  containing  at 
the  time  about  twenty  cities,  with  their  villages,  spread  arounjl  the 
venerable  well  of  Beersheba.  It  was  the  ancestral  seat.  Here  Abra- 
ham lived  nearly  a  century.  Here  Isaac  was  born,  and  Jacob.  It 
was  the  last  place  inhabited  by  Israel,  before  going  down  tp  Egypt. 

To  whom  is  this  lot  ?  Simeon.  In  the  desert-pilgrimage  he  had 
encamped  with  Reuben  and  Gad  on  the  south  of  the  sacred  tent. 
Now,  far  separated  from  them,  he  was  to  set  up  his  tribal  banner,  th& 
Sword,  in  the  extreme  southwest  of  Canaan,  and  there  wage  a  steady 
warfare  with  Philistines,  Amalekites,  and  all  the  uneasy  sons  of  the- 
desert.  To  his  representative,  Shemuel,  son  of  Ammihud,  the  second 
lot  was  given,  and  then  Joshua  prepared  for  the  next. 

The  third  lot.  This  is  what  was  afterwards  known  as  the  far-famed 
Land  of  Galilee,  the  home  of  Jesus,  stretching  from  Mount  Carmel 
on  the  west,  to  the  Sea  of  Galilee  on  the  east.  It  embraced  Tabor,. 
Cana,  Tiberias,  and  Nazareth  within  its  limits.  It  fell  to  Zebulun. 
During  the  journey  from  Egypt  to  Canaan,  he  had  camped  with 
Judah  and  Issachar  on  the  east  of  the  Tabernacle.  Now  his  tribaf 
standard,  a  Ship,  was  to  be  fixed  in  the  far  north.  Joshua  gave  the 
matter  into  the  hands  of  Elizaphan,  the  son  of  Parnach,  and  pro- 
ceeded with  the  great  drawing. 

The  fourth  lot  comprised  the  territory  immediately  south  of  the 
last  It  embraced  the  fertile  plain  of  Esdraelon,  called  "  the  seed-plot 
of  God,"  together  with  Beth-shean,  Endor,  Megiddo,  and  many  others. 
Next  to  Jerusalem,  this  region  was  to  become  the  most  famous  in. 
Jewish  history.  It  fell  to  Issachar. 

The  fifth  lot  fell  to  Asher.  It  lay  northwest  of  Zebulun  and  Issa- 
char, on  the  Mediterranean  shore,  and  contained  some  of  the  richest 
soil  in  Palestine. 

The  sixth  lot  fell  to  Naphtali.  It  is  the  extreme  north  of  ancient 
Canaan,  including  the  splendid  valley  of  Ccelesyria,  and  the  moun- 
tainous country  inclosing  it,  with  a  soil,  as  Josephus  wrote,  rich  and 
productive,  at  the  very  apex  of  the  country. 


TKIBAL  JURISDICTION.  32? 

The  seventh  lot  fell  to  Dan.  It  was  the  smallest  of  the  twelve, 
but  possessed  eminent  natural  advantages.  With  Ephraim  on  the 
north,  and  Benjamin  on  the  east,  the  city  of  Joppa  as  a  seaport,  and 
the  rich  plain  of  Sharon  for  his  corn-land,  it  was  one  of  the  most 
fertile  allotments  found  in  the  urn. 

*********** 
But  the  shades  of  evening  are  falling,  and  the  lines  upon  our  map 
have  become  indistinct.  All  the  villagers  of  modern  Shiloh  are 
gathered  around  us,  each  with  a  right  hand  extended,  not  so  much 
in  token  of  unity,  still  less  of  hospitality,  as  in  urgent  demand  for 
backsheesh.  Our  tents  and  company  are  a  mile  or  more  east,  and 
these  people  have  none  of  the  best  reputation.  Theft,  wounds,  even 
murder,  are  attributed  to  them.  So  we  will  fold  up  our  map  ;  and 
taking  a  last  look  at  the  little  eminence  on  which  the  Tabernacle 
stood  and  the  surrounding  hills,  where  the  tribal  banners  served  for 
rallying  points  to  the  children  of  Jacob,  we  will  hasten  down  the 
incline  eastward,  happy  at  the  privilege  we  have  enjoyed  of  contem- 
plating, here  upon  the  very  spot,  the  Great  Lottery  at  Shiloh. 

And  as  we  lie  down  to  rest,  surrounded  by  this  wild  population, 
but  feeling  that  "  more  are  they  who  are  for  us  than  against  us,"  we 
will  recall  lines  written  by  one  who  many  a  year  since  attained  to 
the  heavenly  Canaan,  and  walked  the  eternal  hills : 

"  Look  up,  my  soul ;   pant  toward  the  eternal  hills, 

Those  heavens  are  fairer  than  they  seem  ; 
There  pleasures  all  sincere  glide  on  in  crystal  rills, 

There  not  a  dreg  of  guilt  defiles ; 
No  grief  disturbs  the  stream. 

TJiat  Canaan  knows  no  noxious  thing, 

No  cursed  soil,  no  tainted  spring ; 

No  roses  grow  on  thorns,  nor  honey  wears  a  sting." 

— Advance  Herald. 

The  boundaries,  then,  for  many  centuries,  suggested  the  jurisdic- 
tion of  the  several  tribes,  just  as  the  lines  of  circumvallation  estab- 
lished by  the  Grand  Lodge,  in  the  establishment  of  a  subordinate 
lodge,  suggest  the  jurisdiction,  allot  the  territory,  and  limit  the  work 
of  each  subordinate.  But  the  tribal  laws  were  far  more  rigid  than 
the  Masonic.  No  member  of  a  tribe  could  hold  land  outside  of  his 
own  jurisdiction,  or  marry  a  wife  except  of  his  own  tribe,  or  acquire 
any  legal  rights  except  those  of  a  stranger.  Women  were  restricted 
in  marriage  to  men  of  their  own  tribe,  as  is  forcibly  shown  in  the 


328  DAUGHTERS  OF  ZELOPHEHAD. 

case  of  "the  daughters  of  Zelophehad,"  described  in  the  lectures  oi 
the  adoptive  degree  of  that  name.  It  appears  from  the  sacred 
record  (Numbers  xxvii.)  that  Zelophehad,  a  most  faithful  man,  had 
died  in  the  wilderness  before  the  great  caravan  reached  Canaan. 
His  five  daughters,  therefore,  approached  Moses,  and  asked  that  in 
the  distribution  of  conquered  territory  they  might  have  their  father's 
share.  The  request  was  granted,  and  the  record  so  made  up.  Aftei 
the  conquest  (Joshua  xvii.  1-6)  Joshua  "gave  them  an  inheritance 
among  the  brethren  of  their  father,"  in  the  tribe  of  Manasseh,  east 
of  the  Jordan.  In  answer  to  the  query  concerning  the  marriage  of 
these  women,  Moses  had  ordained :  "  Let  them  marry  to  whom  they 
think  best,  only  to  the  family  of  the  tribe  of  their  father  (Zelouhe- 


BANNERS   OF  THE  TRIBES. 

ouo  of  Manasseli)  shall  they  marry.     So  shall  not  the  inheritance  of 


BANNERS   OF   THE   TRIBES.  329 

the  children  of  Israel  remove  from  tribe  to  tribe ;  for  every  one  of 
the  children  of  Israel  shall  keep  himself  to  the  inheritance  of  the 
tribe  of  his  fathers.  And  every  daughter  that  possesseth  an  inheri- 
tance in  any  tribe  of  the  children  of  Israel,  shall  be  wife  unto  one  of  the 
family  of  the  tribe  of  her  father,  that  the  children  of  Israel  may  enjoy 
every  man  the  inheritance  of  his  fathers.  Neither  shall  the  inheritance 
remove  from  one  tribe  to  another  tribe ;  but  every  one  of  the  tribes 
of  the  children  of  Israel  shall  keep  himself  to  his  own  inheritance. 
Even  as  the  Lord  commanded  Moses,  so  did  the  daughters  of  Zeloph- 
ehad ;  for  Mahlah,  Tirzah,  and  Hoglah,  and  Milcah,  and  Noah,  the 
daughters  of  Zelophehad,  were  married  unto  their  father's  brothers' 
sons;  and  they  were  married  into  the  families  of  the  sons  of  Ma- 
nasseh  the  son  of  Joseph,  and  their  inheritance  remained  in  the  tribe 
of  the  family  of  their  father."  (Numbers  xxxvi.) 

It  is  a  fitting  close  to  this  chapter  to  present  at  one  view  the  tribal 
badges  worn  upon  the  standards  of  Israel  through  the  deserts,  in  the 
forty  years'  wanderings,  in  the  campaigns  that  resulted  in  the 
conquest  of  Canaan,  and  in  the  national  career  for  nearly  five  cen- 
turies, or  until  the  division,  B.C.  975. 


PTOTEMY   III.,   EVERGETE3. 


CHAPTER  XXL 

JOKDAN  AND  ITS  SEA. 


S"  Friday,  May  8,  1868,  at  8£  A.M.,  I  left  my  boarding-house 
at  Jerusalem,  the  Prussian  House  of  St.  John,  and  with 
two  servants  and  their  horses,  together  with  a  guard,  fur- 
nished me  for  the  consideration  of  twenty  francs  by  the 
Sheikh  of  Bethphage,  took  my  way  to  the  Dead  Sea.  This 
Sheikh  of  Bethphage,  Mustapha  by  name,  farms  from  the  Pasha  of 
Jerusalem  the  privilege  of  conducting  and  guarding  travellers  to  the 
valley  of  Jordan  and  the  Dead  Sea.  He  has  a  good  thing  of  it,  out 
of  the  thousands  who  annually  make  this  pilgrimage,  and  accumulates 
much  wealth.  His  prices  vary  with  the  purse  and  in  experience  of 
travellers.  I  paid  him  a  Napoleon  ($4.00),  because  I  went  alone. 
Had  there  been  a  party  of  us,  the  expense  would  have  been  about 
five  francs  each.  But  I  cheerfully  admit  that  my  social  qualities  are 
not  expansive  enough  to  endure  a  travelling  party  in  the  Holy  Land, 
I  have  never  seen  any  two  men,  in  such  a  combination,  who  wanted 
to  go  the  same  way,  or  stop  at  the  same  hours  of  the  day,  or  eat  at 
the  same  time,  or  do  the  same  thing  generally.  There  is  always  a 
dyspeptic  preacher  with  each  half  dozen  travellers  here,  and  every 
thing  gives  way  to  his  whims.  No ;  I  will  sooner  travel  "  on  foot  and 
alone  "  than  "  to  make  one  "  in  a  party  to  the  Dead  Sea. 

Going  down  the  Via  Dolorosa,  on  the  side  of  which  our  hotel  is 
situated,  our  horses'  iron  shoes  making  an  unholy  rattling  upon  the 
stones  of  the  sacred  street,  I  passed  the  valley  of  Tyropoeon,  through 
which  Damascus  street  runs,  and  began  to  ascend  towards  St.  Ste- 
phen's Gate,  observing  the  various  "  Sacred  Stations,"  so  called,  along 
the  way.  At  each  of  these,  Catholic  devotees  pause  and  worship. 
Soon  the  arch  of  the  Ecce  Homo  is  before  me,  suggestive,  but  in  name 
only,  of  the  most  solemn  incident  that  this  world  affords.  On  the 


332  OUT  AT  ST.  STEPHEN'S  GATE. 

left  of  the  arch  I  see  a  cluster  of  the  scarlet  poppy,  growing  upon  a 
house-top;  on  the  right  the  various  entrances  to  the  Temple  area,  or 
great  platform  of  Mount  Moriah,  which  seems  green  and  inviting 
in  this  morning  light.  Little  children  are  playing  there  in  great 
numbers,  and  making  the  Haram,  or  Sacred  Inclosure  (as  the 
Mohammedans  term  it),  vocal  with  shouts.  Women,  closely  wrapped 
in  ghostly-white  vestments,  walk  leisurely  to  and  fro.  But,  tempt- 
ing as  the  place  appears  through  these  open  gates,  I  know  very  well 
that  'twere  as  much  as  my  life  were  worta  to  enter  without  an  or- 
der from  Nazif  Pasha,  the  Governor. 

So,  passing  forward,  I  meet  a  large  company  of  negroes,  men, 
women,  and  children,  who  look  shiny,  and  contented  enough  in  this 
bright  sunshine.  Their  cheerful  laugh  and  chatter  remind  me  of 
many  a  scene  in  my  own  country,  so  far  in  the  West  that  it  is  only 
1  o'clock  in  the  morning  there  now.  Next  is  the  opening  to  the 
Governor's  palace,  the  steps  lined  with  red-legged  Zouaves.  Out  of 
this  building  comes  every  afternoon,  just  before  sunset,  the  wild 
Saracenic  music  so  dear  to  Oriental  ears,  but  suggesting  to  mine 
only  the  Plutonian  bray  of  a  cavoyard  of  donkeys.  In  the  distance, 
it  sounds  well  enough ;  but  at  short  quarters,  a  good  deal  less  drum 
and  a  good  deal  more  time  would  be  acceptable  to  me.  Now  I  pass 
out  at  St.  Stephen's  Gate,  the  Mount  of  Olives  rising  in  its  gray  and 
solemn  majesty  before  me.  On  my  left  hand,  in  front,  is  the  little 
inclosure  of  a  half  acre,  Gethsemane,  prominent  now  chiefly  for  its 
grove  of  eight  aged  olive-trees  that  peer  over  the  high  stone  wall  sur- 
rounding it.  I  pass  close  by  the  low  entrance,  suggestive  of  that 
humility  so  forcibly  taught  me,  a  quarter  of  a  century  since,  in  the 
degree  of  Royal  Arch.  But  the  blasphemy  of  inclosing  that  sacred 
spot  in  a  high,  whitewashed  wall,  and  making  a  man  pay  a  dollar  to 
go  in,  destroys  its  best  associations.  On  the  right  from  St.  Stephen's 
Gate  is  the  vast  wall,  1,500  feet  long,  which  supports  the  Temple 
area  on  the  east.  At  the  further  corner,  this  wall  is  eighty  feet  high ; 
at  the  nearest,  about  fifty.  The  immense  stones  of  which  the  lower 
strata  are  composed,  show  most  significantly  in  this  morning  sun- 
light. Under  the  wall,  for  a  great  part  of  the  way,  is  a  cemetery  for 
Moslems,  filled  with  whitewashed  monuments,  and  crowded  this 
Friday  morning  with  Moslem  company. 

Passing  across  the  brook  Kedron,  over  a  little  bridge,  I  rise  the 
first  slope  of  the  Mount  of  Olives.  Here  is  another  cemetery,  whose 
grave-stones  show,  in  language  and  form,  that  a  different  race  awaiti 


A  FANATIC.  333 

the  resurrection  under  them.  They  are  Jews.  Many  of  the  stones 
are  of  great  antiquity.  The  two  races,  always  inimical  to  each  other, 
lie  face  to  face  in  death,  unfriendly  to  the  last,  while  the  valley  of 
the  Kedron  stands  placidly  between,  suggesting  better  thoughts.  Mj 
guard  bursts  forth  here  in  a  long,  monotonous  song,  or  howl,  which 
the  Arabs  ignorantly  conceive  to  be  music.  Music !  It  is  worse  than  a 
hand-organ ;  worse  than  the  Fellow-Crafts  Song  as  I  used  to  hear 

Brother  Y sing  it.  I  have  heard  a  great  deal  of  this  Arab 

music,  but  it  is  always  unpleasant.  Scanning  the  appearance  of  the 
guard,  I  find  his  head  covered  with  a  cotton  handkerchief,  tied  on 
with  a  rope;  his  feet  enshrouded  in  large  red  gaiters,  turned  up  at 
the  toes,  stockingless ;  his  legs  bare  to  the  knees.  His  name,  as 
nearly  as  I  can  speak  it,  is  Hhhmdbh.  He  has  the  usual  Arab  cloak, 
with  a  hood ;  is  girded  with  a  sword  like  that  which  "  the  corporal 
of  the  guard  "  used  to  wear,  of  a  wet  night,  in  "  Company  B,  Sixth 
Eegiment,  Home  Guards,"  and  carries  before  him  a  double-barreled 
shot-gun,  I  hope  not  loaded.  If  my  life  is  to  rest  upon  his  pluck, 
I  shall  never  return  to  Jerusalem  again ;  and  the  Equitable  Life 
Assurance  may  as  well  get  ready  to  pay  my  widow  that  $4,000. 

I  passed  successively  a  fanatic,  wearing  a  sheep-skin  dress,  travel- 
ling to  Bethany  in  the  fulfilment  of  a  vow.  His  mode  of  locomo- 
tion was  really  peculiar.  I  have  seen  men,  at  home,  so  befuddled 
with  drink  as  to  use  both  sides  of  a  road  at  the  same  time  ;  but  this 
poor  chap  is  literally  making  tracks  by  lying  down  and  measuring 
kis  length  .in  the  road !  He  looks  for  all  the  world  like  a  huge 
measuring-worm.  Judging  from  the  marks  he  made,  I  should  say 
he  was  about  five  feet  eight  inches,  and  would  reach  Bethany,  at 
present  rate,  by  midnight  Great  luck  to  him.  I  gave  him  an 
orange,  and  it  seemed  to  do  him  good.  The  next  person  I  encounter 
is  a  woman,  driving  a  donkey  before  her,  loaded  with  stone ;  she 
herself  at  the  same  time  carrying  a  heavy  load  on  her  back,  and 
knitting  a  stocking  as  she  walks.  I  will  say  for  her,  however,  that 
she  is  the  only  really  industrious  woman  of  her  race  I  have  met  for 
a  week.  If  I  knew  her  name  I  would  embalm  it  here ;  but  were  I 
to  speak  to  her  the  fellahs  around  would  mob  me. 

Beyond  the  Garden  of  Gethsemane,  and  a  little  way  on  my  left 
hand,  is  the  path  up  which  King  David  walked,  weeping,  and  with 
naked  feet  and  covered  head,  when  submitting  his  sorrows  to  God 
(2  Sam.  xv.  30).  This  path  runs  up  a  series  of  little  terraces  abund- 
antly productive  in  olives  and  figs. 


334  BETHANY   AND  ITS   GUEST. 

Rising  to  the  crest  of  Olivet,  I  take  a  survey,  over  my  left  shoul 
der,  of  the  splendid  panorama  of  the  City  of  the  Great  King,  on 
which  I  never  weary  with  gazing.  There  is  but  one  better  locality 
for  seeing  Jerusalem  than  this ;  that  is  Mount  Scopas,  about  a  mile 
north  of  Mount  Olivet  From  Mount  Olivet,  however,  the  eye  ranges 
over  the  buildings  and  around  the  walls  of  Jerusalem,  as  leisurely 
and  accurately  as  though  studying  a  model  of  the  city  upon  a  table. 
Its  bulwarks,  towers,  and  regal  buildings,  from  this  summit,  must 
have  appeared,  in  the  days  of  its  prosperity,  transcendently  glorious. 
Perhaps  Croly  had  this  point  in  view  when,  in  his  Salathiel,  he  de- 
scribes the  Temple  of  Herod  in  words  of  great  power. 

And  now  the  noble  expanse  of  water,  the  Dead  Sea,  fifty  by  nine 
miles  in  extent,  which  I  am  to-day  to  visit,  breaks  before  my  eyes, 
fifteen  miles  distant.  It  looks  from  here  like  a  silver  sea.  Pushing 
on,  past  the  beggar  as  naked  as  the  law  allows  ;  past  the  long  files 
of  native  women,  tattooed  hideously  with  blue  upon  the  lower  lip 
and  chin,  with  their  breasts  indecently  exposed,  and  each  having 
pendent  upon  the  neck  one  or  more  heavy  silver  coins,  I  now  round 
the  last  point,  and  see  the  village  before  me,  Bethany,  memorable  as 
the  locality  where  Lazarus  was  raised  to  a  second  mortality  by  an 
enlivening  v&ice  (John  xi.),  and  where,  on  the  Wednesday  of  the 
Passion  Week,  two  days  before  his  crucifixion,  Jesus  received  the 
costly  offering  which  a  generous  woman  made  him  in  anointing  his 
body  for  burial,  eliciting  the  hypocrisy  of  Judas,  his  covetous  defence 
of  the  poor,  and  the  overwhelming  rebuke  of  the  Master.  Here  the 
brightness  of  his  divinity  shone  forth,  and  here,  too,  his  condemning 
word  fell  upon  the  fruitless  tree,  which  then  to  the  very  root 
withered  away.  The  loose  stones  on  this  hillside,  rattling  under  my 
horse's  feet,  recall  the  many  instances  of  stoning  to  death  practised 
in  this  vicinity.  How  those  old  Jews  did  believe  in  "the  virtue  of 
stones."  (Vide  Noah  Webster's  old  Spelling  Book).  Lucky,  the  old 
man  in  the  fable  was  not  so  hasty  in  their  use.  Amongst  the  ab- 
surd, often  ludicrous  stories  told  here  of  Jesus,  it  is  a  wonder  that 
no  one  describes  him  as  fastening  his  cruel  tormentors  on  the  stoop, 
as  they  bowed  over  to  pick  up  stones  for  their  hateful  employment ! 
Perhaps  there  may  be  some  such  story,  though  I  never  heard  of  it 
I  give  here  an  accurate  view  of  Bethany  in  its  present  degraded 
state. 

Going  over  the  path  that  Jesus  so  often  trod,  on  his  way  to  the 
home  of  Martha  and  Mary,  1  wind  through  the  miserable  huts  of 


BETH  PH  AGE. 


335 


Bethany,  running  the  gauntlet  of  its  entire  population,  who  stand 
oy  the  roadside  crying  "  backsheesli,  howadji,"  and  so  on  ;  out  at  the 
farther  end,  looking  wistfully  upon  the  house  and  garden  in  which, 


•• ---i='-". 


BETHANY,    LOOKING   WESTWAED. 

tradition  says,  Lazarus  and  his  sisters  lived.  Upon  a  sultry  day 
like  this  the  traveller  will  prefer  to  pass  around  this  village,  rather 
than  encounter  the  filth  and  vermin  of  Bethany. 

On  a  hill,  half  a  mile  on  the  right,  is  the  town  of  Bethphage,  where 
my  sheikh  lives.  It  looks  much  prettier  and  larger  than  its  sister 
town  of  Bethany.  But  probably,  "'tis  distance  lends  enchantment 
to  the  view,"  in  this,  as  in  many  other  instances.  Here  the  road 
from  the  northern  side  of  Mount  Olivet  joins  my  own ;  the  way  David 
is  said  to  have  come  when  he  fled  from  before  his  rebellious  son,  aa 
intimated  above.  Down  this  valley  must  often  have  walked  the  MAN, 
elegantly  described  as  "  one  who  displayed  courage  without  rashness ; 
humility  without  meanness ;  dignity  without  arrogance ;  perseverance 
without  obstinacy,  and  affection  without  weakness." 

We  are  now  half  an  hour's  ride  from  Bethany,  at  a  gushing  foun- 
tain, inclosed  in  a  stone  framework  designed  to  collect  j;he  water  foi 
travellers'  use.  It  is  close  by  the  roadside,  and  very  convenient  foj 


336  LAZY   REAPING. 

wayfarers.  As  my  guard  informs  me  that  we  shall  find  no  more  water 
for  several  hours,  my  Arab  servants  drink  their  fill  here,  while  I  ride 
on,  secure  in  a  quart-bottle  full  of  good  coffee  stowed  away  in  my 
wallet  In  Holy  Land  travel  a  man  should  lean  on  his  coffee-bottle. 
The  road  now  rapidly  descends,  and  I  begin  to  realize  that  from 
Jerusalem  to  the  Dead  Sea  I  have  a  descent  to  make  of  nearly  four 
thousand  feet.  The  air,  fortunately,  what  there  is  of  it,  blows  up 
the  valley ;  but,  in  spite  of  that,  the  heat  already  begins  to  be  oppres- 
sive. The  deep  blue  haze  from  the  mountains  of  Moab,  that  rise  up 
before  me,  suggests  a  fearfully  hot  day,  and  so  does  the  dark  leaden 
mist  that  hangs  over  the  Dead  Sea  yonder,  which  I  am  approaching. 
I  wonder  if  Bohr  Loot  (the  Sea  of  Lot,  as  the  natives  call  it)  pre- 
sented this  appearance  to  Moses  when  he  stood  on  that  tall  peak 
yonder,  and  looked  over  this  way  with  such  a  longing  gaze.  It  is 
quite  likely ;  for  it  was  this  time  of  year,  only  four  or  five  weeks, 
earlier,  that  Moses  died,  and  Joshua  led  the  people  across  the  Jordan 
at  the  place  I  am  to  visit  before  night 

Half  an  hour  further,  and  the  season  is  two  weeks  advanced  from 
what  it  was  on  the  hills  about  Jerusalem.  Here  the  natives  are 
gathering  their  crop  of  beans  (lentils,  the  pottage-bean  of  Jacob  and 
Esau),  and  cutting  down  their  harvest  of  barley.  Men  sit  on  their 
haunches,  and  reach  out  with  the  left  hand  to  grasp  the  barley. 
They  cut  it  with  a  poor,  dull  sickle,  about  as  big  as  a  case-knife,  held 
in  the  right  hand.  After  the  reaper  has  cut  all  within  reach,  he 
rises  up,  hitches  a  step  forward,  and  squats  again.  As  fast  as  cut, 
the  barley  is  tied  up  and  taken  away  by  tho  women  and  children. 
A  flock  of  goats  and  sheep  follow  immediately  behind  the  reapers, 
and  glean  all  that  is  left  for  them ;  no  very  abundant  leavings,  I  am 
sure.  In  the  distance,  a  flight  of  vultures  are  hovering  over  some 
object,  probably  a  wounded  goat,  for  whose  death  they  are  anxiously 
waiting.  The  flies  bred  in  this  hot  valley  begin  to  distress  our  poor 
brutes ;  and  I  feel  relieved  when,  two  hours  further,  the  road  brings 
me  upon  open  ground.  Here  are  considerable  ruins  of  what  was 
once  a  large  place.  Bleached  land-shells  abound.  Upon  one  of  the 
squared  stones  I  trace  an  emblem  similar  to  the  crux  ansata,  so  fre- 
quent in  Egyptian  hieroglyphics;  upon  another  a  handsome  mould- 
ing made  upon  its  three  sides.  As  nearly  as  I  can  draw  them,  the 
figures  will  be  found  on  the  next  page. 

Somewhere  on  my  left  here  must  have  stood  Bahurim,  connected 
with  various  incidents  in  Holy  Writ;  and  near  it  I  see  a  curious 


AWFUL   BABKENXESS. 


337 


epecimen  of  curved  stratification,  which,  had  I  the  time  to  spare,  I 
would  examine  more  minutely.    Now  there  passes  me  a  sheikh,  grave 

and  patriarchal  in  appearance,  with  state- 
ly figure,  calm,  composed  countenance, 
and  long  white  beard.  I  know  he  looks 
just  as  Abraham  did  when  he  was  here. 
The  confused  character  of  these  hills, 
the  contorted  strata  and  general  want  of 
geological  and  topographical  order  that 
pervades  the  twelve  miles  of  country  I 
was  passing  over,  throws  some  light,  per- 
haps, upon  the  difficulty  experienced  in 
following  the  account  in  Joshua  of  the 
boundary  lines,  which  ran  somewhere 
here  between  the  tribes  of  Judah  and 
Benjamin.  It  is  literally  a  "  terrible,  un- 
inhabited wilderness." 

In  four  hours'  ride  from  Jerusalem  I 
catch  a  glimpse  of  the  northwestern  bay 
of  (Bahr  Loot]  the  Dead  Sea.  It  is  use- 
less to  endeavor  to  portray  my  feel  ings  at 
this  consummation  of  forty  years'  desire. 
Up  to  this  moment  I  had  always  felt  that  to  gaze  upon  the  Dead  Sea 
must  be  the  highest  privilege  of  a  traveller.  But  everything  around 
me  now  is  as  desolation.  The  barrenness  of  the  hills  approaching 
the  sea  is  awful  beyond  description.  A  livid  color  hangs  upon  the 
rocks  and  clays.  The  scanty  vegetation  seems  as  stiff  and  dead  as 
coral.  Not  a  bird,  not  an  insect  is  visible  near  the  surface  of  the 
earth.  The  great  precipices  in  the  mountains  beyond  the  sea 
actually  seem  to  frown  above  me,  as  if  warning  me  to  proceed  no 
further.  I  am  conscious  of  a  gloomy  superstition  oppressing  my 
soul,  and  already  can  almost  behold  phantoms  in  the  air.  In  such 
scenes  as  these  dwelt  the  stern,  high-minded  teacher,  John  the 
Baptist,  and  here  was  the  place  of  the  temptation  of  Jesus. 

A  long  descent  to  a  valley  gives  some  variety  to  the  scene,  and 
shuts  the  horrible  vision  from  my  eyes.  Now  I  approach  a  Moham- 
medan mosque  connected  with  a  large  but  deserted  khan.  A  well  of 
water,  but  warm  and  sulphurous,  invites  me  to  alight  from  my  horse 
and  enter.  The  guide  says  this  is  Neby  Mousa,  the  tomb  of  Moses, 
and  that  at  certain  seasons  of  the  year  it  is  much  visited  by  the 

22 


-o 

STON'E    MA  II  Its. 


338  NEBY    MOUSA. 

natives  for  purposes  of  worship.  The  door  is  covered,  not  barricaded, 
by  a  chain  ingeniously  hung  in  front,  like  one  that  I  saw  in  Gebal  a 
few  weeks  since.  The  windows  of  the  mosque  are  strongly  protected 
by  iron  bars,  upon  which  are  tied  innumerable  rags  of  cotton,  silk, 
and  woolen,  the  tokens  of  Moslem  devotion.  Within  I  can  see  a 
tomb  covered  with  a  ragged  cloth,  once  richly  embroidered  with 
Arabic  inscriptions  worked  in  silver,  and  a  canopy  hung  over  that. 
An  elegant  silver  dish,  chased  in  Saracenic  ornamentation,  stands  on 
the  window  ledge,  shaped  somewhat  like  a  bell.  The  khan  or 
tavern  is  very  large,  and  contains  many  stables  for  brutes,  and  apart- 
ments for  men.  The  well  or  cistern  is  about  ten  feet  deep.  Inside 
of  the  inclosing  wall  of  the  whole,  are  seen,  at  intervals  of  ten  feet, 
large  stone  rings  for  fastening  horses,  placed  about  two  feet  from  the 
ground.  The  dome  of  the  mosque  is  surmounted  by  the  usual  cres- 
cent, inclosing  a  star. 

One  writer  informs  us:  "This  tomb  is  held  in  great  veneration  by 
all  native  Mohammedans.  The  structure  over  the  grave  (whose 
grave  cannot  now  be  ascertained)  is  covered  with  elegant  carpeting 
and  painted  calico,  extending  on  all  sides  to  the  ground.  This 
canopy  is  adorned  with  many  long  strings  of  wooden  beads  hung 
around  it"  The  Greek  Christians  affirm  that  this  building  was 
simply  erected  by  a  Christian  saint  named  Moses ;  but  this,  of  course, 
the  Moslems  disavow.  I  am  told,  in  Jerusalem,  that  some  years 
men  and  women  in  great  numbers  come  to  Neby  Mousa,  all  the 
way  from  Damascus  and  other  places,  to  worship.  An  old  traveller 
says  "the  name  of  its  founder  is  unknown;"  nor,  as  an  author 
remarks,  "  is  he  much  wronged  by  being  forgotten,  since  so  mean  a 
building  can  give  no  fame  to  the  founder."  Another  one  describes  a 
procession  he  met  on  the  way  to  this  place,  having  a  live  goat  in 
company,  which  they  were  about  to  sacrifice,  in  the  fulfilment  of 
some  vow ;  reminding  us  of  the  scape-goat  of  the  Levitical  worship, 
which  was  led  into  these  hills  by  an  appointed  servant  of  the  Temple, 
and  here  turned  loose  to  the  jackal  and  wolf  of  the  wilderness. 

The  surroundings  of  Neby  Mousa  are  extremely  desolate ;  not  a 
shrub  or  blade  of  grass  being  visible  on  the  naked  sides  of  the  hills; 
scarred  with  fissures  and  gaps,  where  the  old  hermits  used  to  dwell 
in  the  cliffs  of  the  valleys,  in  the  curves  of  the  earth,  and  in  the 
rocks,  among  the  bushes  (Joo  xxx.  6).  If  I  could  only  look  south 
from  this  scene  of  barrenness  and  desolation  to  the  little  white  dome 
that  covers  Neby  Haroun  (the  tomb  of  Aaron),  on  Mount  Hor,  two 


DOWN   IX   THE   VALLEY.  339 

hundred  miles  distant !    But  the  resting-place  of  the  first  High-Priest 
3f  Israel  is  too  distant  for  my  eye. 

Before  descending  lower,  I  look  across  the  valley  to  detect,  if  it 
may  be,  the  Abel-shittim,  the  last  encampment  of  Israel  ere  entering 
the  Promised  Land,  and  read  the  appropriate  passages.  It  was  hard 
to  read,  and  harder  to  gaze.  Even  the  sight  of  the  printed  paper 
was  lost,  at  times,  in  the  hot  and  tremulous  haze  of  the  Oriental 
noon.  At  one  place  I  caught  sight  of  the  road  leading  from  Mar 
Saba  to  Jericho,  passing  through  an  apparently  impassable  gorge  in 
whose  depths  the  company  of  camels  looked  no  larger  than  the  head 
of  the  Senior  Warden's  gavel,  in  the  "West. 

Resting  at  the  khan  of  Neby  Mousa,  I  again  go  forward,  climbing 
the  last  range  of  hills  that  separate  me  from  the  object  of  my  visit ; 
then  descending  by  a  long  and  unpleasant  way  to  the  "  plains  of  Jor- 
dan." About  a  mile  below  Neby  Mousa,  is  the  best  spot  for  viewing 
the  sea.  It  is  now  high  noon,  the  most  sultry  hour  of  a  fearfully  hot 
day.  Sand  clouds  are  flying  along  the  distant  reaches  of  the  valley, 
pushing  last  year's  stubble  over  the  plain.  Flights  of  pigeons  relieve, 
in  a  slight  degree,  the  terrible  monotony  of  the  scene.  Moving  forward, 
another  hour  brings  me  to  the  cane-brakes  that  skirt  the  sea.  These 
cane-brakes,  when  set  on  fire,  burn  like  pine-shingles.  Brother  H.  B. 
Tristam,  at  Aiu  Jidy,  twenty-five  miles  south  of  here,  put  a  brand  to 
such  a  thicket,  and  it  devoured  the  briers  and  thorns,  kindled  in  the 
thickets  of  the  forest,  and  mounted  up  like  the  lifting  up  of  smoke 
(Isaiah  ix.  18).  In  one  of  these  small  cane-brakes,  my  guide  points  out 
a  small  pool  of  water,  from  which  he  and  the  Arab  servants  greedily 
drink,  but  one  mouthful  suffices  me.  It  is  mawkish  and  sulphur- 
ous stuff.  Strange  to  say,  the  water  abounds  in  a  small  black  shell- 
fish, of  which  I  preserved  a  few  specimens  in  my  vest  pocket.  The 
proper  name  is,  I  believe,  melania. 

A  traveller  fancies  that  the  bark  of  these  shrubs  has  the  scent  and 
taste  of  smoke.  If  true,  I  should  attribute  this,  not  so  much  to  the 
allusion  in  Genesis  as  to  the  incessant  puffing  of  cigarettes  that 
goes  on  here,  from  the  mouth  of  every  visitor.  The  same  writer, 
(Chateaubriand)  elegantly  testifies  to  Scripture  images  thus  :  "  Thia 
burning  sun,  this  impetuous  eagle,  this  barren  fig-tree ;  — all  the  poe- 
try, all  the  imagery  of  Scripture  are  here.  This  wild,  barren,  desolate 
Bcenery  is  a  fitting  accompaniment  of  the  mysterious  sea  which  rolls 
its  waves  ">ver  the  guilty  cities." 

Passing  the  cane-brake,  only  a  short  interval  separates  me  now 


340  THE   DEAD   SEA. 

from  the  seashore.  To  my  astonishment,  a  flock  of  large  and  elegant 
ducks  were  floating  calmly  near  the  water's  edge,  suggesting  thoughts 
of  a  duck-supper.  But,  although  I  seized  the  shot-gun  from  my 
guide  and  ran  towards  them,  they  were  too  fast  for  me,  and  scattered 
off  to  the  further  side  of  the  sea.  However,  as  I  discovered  afterwards 
that  the  gun  was  not  loaded,  or  capable  of  it,  it  makes  the  less  differ- 
ence. This  brief  run,  by  the  way,  came  near  ending  my  mortal  career 
then  and  there.  The  torrid  heat  reflected  from  the  sand,  the  fact  of 
my  having  fasted  since  early  breakfast,  and  the  fatigue  of  the  ride, 
conspired  to  give  me  a  vertigo  which  was  own  cousin  to  a  sunstroke. 
I  sat  down  upon  the  drifts  of  petrified  wood  that  line  the  shore,  drank 
my  strong  coffee,  hastened  to  disencumber  myself  of  clothing,  ate 
heartily  of  my  lunch,  and  in  half  an  hour  felt  revived. 

THE  DEAD  SEA  1  How  sweetly  and  placidly  it  rippled  that  day 
at  my  feet,  along  its  smooth,  clean  sand  and  pebbles;  how  cool  its 
waters  to  my  hands  and  feet.  I  could  not  resist  the  temptation,  hot 
as  the  day  was,  and  dangerous  as  the  experiment  was,  under  the 
dreadful  sun,  to  take  a  bath  in  it.  Carefully  holding  my  umbrella  over 
me,  1  waded  into  the  sea  until  the  water  was  up  to  my  chin;  then 
tested,  what  has  been  so  often  affirmed  of  this  singular  sea,  that  a 
man  cannot  sink  in  its  waters;  for  I  had  only  to  draw  my  feet  under 
me  from  the  bottom,  taking  care  to  keep  them  perpendicular,  and  I 
floated  upright  under  my  umbrella,  like  a  graceful  merman.  The 
only  difficulty  in  the  case  is  to  prevent  your  feet  from  rising  to  the 
surface.  I  could  have  floated  in  this  way  to  the  other  end  of  the  sea. 
Inadvertently  wetting  my  head,  however,  I  got  some  water  in  my 
eyes,  from  which  I  suffered  severely  for  half  an  hour  afterwards.  It 
took,  in  fact,  several  days  to  bring  my  eyes  to  their  normal  state.  The 
pain  is  like  that  produced  by  getting  diluted  vitriol  under  your  eye- 
lids, a  favorite  experiment  with  boys.  Coming  out,  I  was  covered, 
almost  in  a  moment,  by  an  inflorescence  of  salt  and  sulphur.  My 
head  and  ears  were  stiff  with  the  bitter  mixture,  which  kept  me  lick- 
ing my  chops  for  an  hour.  A  few  drops  of  the  Dead  Sea  water 
falling  upon  my  clothes  instantly  evaporated,  leaving  the  salt,  which 
remained  there  until  I  washed  it  out  a  week  afterwards. 

It  would  take  pages  to  collect  all  the  absurd  accounts  on  record 
concerning  this  basin  of  chemicals.  One  old  fellow  heard  a  dismal 
sound  proceed  from  its  waters,  like  the  stifled  clamors  of  the  wretched 
Sodomites  engulfed  in  its  waters !  He  had  probably  taken  a  dose  of 
arrack  in  this  hot  place,  and  it  got  into  his  head.  It  served  me  that 


BOOTLESS   BOATING.  341 

way.  The  desolate  but  magnificent  features  of  the  locality  have  re- 
minded some  fervid  fancies  of  the  celestial  dream  embodied  in  Para- 
dise Lost.  Its  rugged  and  pathless  rocks  ;  the  native  dignity  of  its 
scenery ;  its  barrenness,  so  inhospitable  to  botanist  and  bee ;  the  black 
fetid  limestone  which  underlies  it,  and  starts  occasionally  into  view 
to  suggest  the  horrors  in  its  bed ;  the  waste  land  that  smoketh ;  its 
plants  bearing  fruits  that  never  come  to  ripeness ;  a  standing  pillar 
of  salt,  a  monument  of  unbelievers'  souls  (Wisdom  ix.  7) — all  these 
have  been  described  time  and  again  in  books.  Poets  have  written  : 

"  The  Dead  Sea  fruits  that  tempt  the  eye, 
But  turn  to  ashes  on  the  lips." 

"  The  Dead  Sea  air, 
And  nothing  lives  that  enters  there;" 

and  many  other  words  to  that  effect.  Josephus,  with  his  usual  gross  in- 
accuracy of  detail,  avers  that  "  no  one  was  ever  drowned  in  the  Dead 
Sea ! "  Lucky  for  the  great  historian,  this  test  was  not  tried  on  him  ! 
A  story  is  told  down  here  about  a  Frenchman  who  brought  a  ship  to 
the  Dead  Sea,  a  few  years  since,  for  exploration.  But  instead  of  get- 
ting bright  copper-boats,  as  Lieut.  Lynch  did  in  1848,  this  genius 
brought  an  iron  one,  so  heavy  it  broke  down  the  camels  that "  toted  " 
the  pieces  from  Joppa.  Finally  it  was  got  to  the  Dead  Sea,  with 
immense  labor  and  expense,  put  together  and  launched.  Then  the 
heat  in  this  awful  hollow  collapsed  the  sides  and  made  it  leak.  The 
Arabs  naturally  stole  the  bolts  and  loose  rigging,  and  bolted  away 
with  'em.  Nobody  could  navigate  it.  So  the  Frenchman  gave  it  to 
the  French  Consul ;  the  French  Consul  gave  it  to  the  Turkish  Pasha 
of  Jerusalem ;  and  the  Pasha  of  Jerusalem  gave  it  (profanely)  to  the 
devil ;  and  finally  it  was  sunk  at  the  bottom,  to  get  rid  of  it,  and  now 
lies,  I  suppose,  not  far  from  the  ruins  of  Sodom  and  Gomorrah, 
wherever  they  may  be.  But  I  have  not  told  the  hundredth  part  of 
the  stories  I  heard  about  the  Dead  Sea.  In  1322  a  traveller  declared 
that  iron  would  float  in  this  water,  but  feathers  would  sink !  Some 
have  called  it  the  Lake  of  Asafoetida;  some  the  Stream  of  Hell. 
Nothing  but  a  dog  ever  had  so  many  hard  names  as  the  Dead  Sea. 
But  the  fellow  who  wrote  that  metal  would  not  sink  here,  would 
have  changed  his  mind  had  he  seen  how  quickly  my  thirteen-bladed 
knife  went  under,  and  how  rapidly  I  snatched  it  out  again.  The 
queer  composition  reminds  me  that  it  has  every  ingredient,  except, 
perhaps,  antimony,  for  making  the  celebrated  bengal  lights.  Some 
day  a  Yankee  chemist  may  become  a  millionaire  out  of  this  water  1 


342  ACCOUNTS   OF  THE   DEAD   SEA. 

Josephus  says  of  the  bituminous  rock  that  floats  from  the  bottom, 
"  God  set  this  stone  on  fire  by  a  thunderbolt "  (Ant.  L,  xi.  10).  But 
my  "literature  of  the  Dead  Sea"  is  so  exuberant,  I  must  throw  in  a 
page  or  two  solid : 

The  people  have  traditions  of  cities  whose  walls  and  houses  are 
built  of  slabs  of  native  salt ;  a  nice  shelter  for  a  rainy  season !  "  A 
land  of  brimstone  and  salt,  that  is  not  sown,  nor  beareth;  nor  doth 
any  grass  grow  thereon ; "  this  is  from  the  Apocrypha. 

"  Where  now  the  Dead  Sea  rolls  its  sluggish  tide, 
And  mournful  solitude  and  death  reside." 

The  ingredient  bromide,  dissolved  in  potash,  as  it  is  here,  makes 
bromide  of  potassium  and  bromate  of  potash.  It  blackens  vegetable 
colors.  Its  specific  gravity  is  2.97,  much  heavier  than  water.  In 
ordinary  sea-water  and  sea-weeds,  it  is  associated  with  chlorine  and 
iodine ;  also  in  some  brine  springs  belonging  to  rock-salt  deposits. 
This  bromide  of  potassium  is  used  medicinally,  chiefly  in  scrofulosis, 
both  internally  and  externally ;  dose,  four  to  eight  grains  daily ;  the 
tribe  around  Jericho  evidently  do  not  use  it  for  their  disease.  This 
exhausts  my  chemical  knowledge.  This  scene  of  indescribable  bar- 
renness and  desolation,  of  horrid  drearinesss  and  marshy  despair,  the 
Valley  of  Salt,  is  finely  described  in'Bonar's  work,  page  326.  I  wish 
somebody  would  republish  it  in  this  country.  Standing  on  the 
shore,  in  this  seething,  fervent  heat,  and  reading  with  solemn  awe 
the  narrative  of  the  destruction  of  the  guilty  cities  of  the  plain,  as 
in  Genesis  xix.,  a  strange  connection  runs  through  my  mind  between 
the  office  of  Senior  Deacon  in  Fortitude  Lodge,  No.  47,  Kentucky, 
and  the  history  of  Sodom.  It  takes  a  hundred  times  longer  to  write 
it  than  to  think  it  out;  yet  here  is  the  chain  of  thought:  Lot  was  a 
model  of  hospitality  (see  Genesis  xix.) ;  the  Senior  Deacon,  in  his  ad- 
mitted duty  of  "welcoming  and  accommodating  visiting  brethren/'* 
is  the  medium  of  lodge  hospitality,  so  pleasant  and  so  good  to  its 
recipient  Jesus  declared  (in  Mark  vi.  11)  that  the  punishment  of 
inhospitality  to  his  apostles  should  be  greater  than  that  inflicted  on 
the  Sodomites.  (Q.  E.  D.)  Seeing  a  flock  of  wild  ducks  swimming  in 
these  waters,  I  recall  the  fact  that  the  American  traveller,  Stevens, 
when  he  was  here,  March  31,  1836,  saw  a  flock  of  gulls  (probably 
mallard-ducks,  like  mine)  floating  quietly  on  the  surface.  Some 
writers  have  averred  with  innocence  that  no  bird  ever  alights  in  this 
water!  Recalling  David's  image  of  hell,  "  Raining  a  burning 
tempest,  fire,  and  brimstone,  and  a  horrible  storm  "  (Psalm  xi.  6),  and 
many  other  passages,  I  looked  over  the  sea  and  shuddered.  Recall- 
ing somebody's  account  of  the  groans  of  demons  issuing  from  the 
Dead  Sea,  I  will  acknowledge  that  in  my  own  dizziness  I  seemed 
to  hear  deep  sighs  come  from  the  water.  They  have  a  saying  down 
here,  that  a  man  who  spends  a  noontime  at  Bahr  Loot  will 


THE   WHITE   UMBKELLA.  343 

ghosts!    If  he  doesn't  look  out,  he  will  make  one  of  himself.      Vis- 
itors should  come  earlier  in  the  day  than  I  did,  and  spend  eereral 
hours  in  experiments.    For  instance,  boil  three  ounces  of  the  water 
dry  in  a  tin  cup,  and  the   sediment  will  weigh  one  ounce ;    cover 
eggs  in  the  hot  sand  at  your  feet,  and  in  thirty  minutes  they  will  be 
roasted,  done,  and  burst  at  that;  build  a  fire  of  the  dry  brambles 
your  servant  can  gather  at  the  base  of  the  hills,  and  lay  bits  of  bitu- 
men on  it,  and  it   will  smell  like  a  box  of  Richardson's   Detroit 
matches;  drop  a  fresh  egg  in  the  sea  and  it  will  float  one-third  out; 
put  a  drop  of  the  water  in  your  right  eye  and  you  will  weep ;  a 
drop  in  your  left  and  you  will  howl.    The  coldest  water  in  which  a 
person  can  swim  easily  is  44°    Fahrenheit.     The  stinted,  stunted 
shrubs;  the  numerous  aspects  of  desolation ;  the  terrible  convulsions 
of  nature;    the  burning  sun  and  the  heated  air;  the  barren,  salt- 
crusted  terrene,  have  all  been  described  by  hundreds  of  travellers  ;  and 
why  should  I  repeat  facts  published  in  a   hundred  volumes  ?     A 
light  boat  was  conveyed  across  here  from  Joppa,  in  1837,  by  Moore 
and  Beck.    Previously  to  that,  however,  Costigan,  who  lies  buried  at 
Jerusalem,  had  performed  the  exploit  of  navigating  the  Dead  Sea. 
Molyneaux  came  in  1847,  and  Lynch  in  1848.     There  would  be  no 
difficulty  in  this  matter,  if  people  would  only  come  here  at  the  right 
season,  say  December  or  January.    All  the  phenomena  that  excite 
so  much  amazement  in  the  traveller  result  from  the  superabund- 
ance of  salt  in  the  water,  and  the  tremendous  heat  of  the  sun.      The 
deep  parts    of  the  great  Swedish  fresh-water  lakes    are   still  salt, 
owing  to  the  iveight  of  that  mineral.    A  thought  suggested  to  me  when 
I  spread  forth  my  hands  in  the  midst  of  the  Dead  Sea,  as  he  that 
swimmeth  spreadeth  forth  his  hands  to  swim  (Isaiah  xxy.  11).    In 
this  relation  we  have  an  abundance  of  analogies  in  the  United  States. 
Nevada,  for  instance,  is  capable  of  supplying  the  world  with  salt.    It 
abounds  in  salt  springs,  salt  marshes,  salt  mountains,  and  great  plains, 
where  the  evaporation  of  ages  has  left  deposits  of  salt  almost  illimit- 
able in  extent.     For  mining  purposes,  the  salt  of  these  deposits  re- 
quires only  to  be  shoveled  into  sacks  and  transported  to  the  place  of 
use.    For  table  and  dairy  purposes,  it  is  not  quite  equal  to  Eastern 
salt.    It  contains  a  slight  per  cent,  of  impurity,  which  would  have 
to  be  removed  by  re-evaporation,  or  some  refining  process,  to  render 
it  marketable  for  domestic  use.    This  may  not  be  the  case  with  all 
deposits  of  this  character  within  the  State,  but  applies  to  such  of 
them  as  have  been  worked.      Within  fifty  miles  of  Eeno,  and  not 
more  than  one  mile  from  the  railroad,  are  some  of  the  finest  salt 
springs  in  the  world.      One  gallon  of  water  will  evaporate  three 
pounds  of  the  best  quality  of  salt. 

I  found  it  profitable,  hurried  as  I  was,  while  sitting  here  under  my 
white  umbrella,  to  read  every  Biblical  passage  I  could  find  in  which 
the  sea  or  its  surroundings  are  named ;  and  taking  a  piece  of  salt  in 
my  hand,  which  had  been  broken  from  the  great  salt-mountain  (Jebel 


344  PRESIDENT   BLANCHARD. 

Usdttm),  from  the  southwest  corner  of  the  sea  yonder,  to  write  thia 

STORY  OF  THE  LUMP  OP  SALT. 

"  I  saw  the  coming  of  righteous  Lot  into  this  circle  (ciccar)  of 
the  Jordan,  under  the  brotherly  kindness  of  his  uncle,  the  patriarch 
Abraham.  I  was  present  when  Chedorlaomer  invaded  these  regions 
from  the  east,  and  overthrew  the  kings  of  these  cities,  in  a  great  bat- 
tle, and  captured  Lot  and  his  household.  When,  by  the  activity  and 
prowess  of  Abraham  and  his  '  trained  servants,  born  in  his  own  house, 
three  hundred  and  eighteen,'  Lot  was  rescued,  I  witnessed  his  return 
to  Sodom.  I  recall  with  fidelity  the  days  when  all  this  region,  now 
a  howling  wilderness,  was  *  well  watered  everywhere,  even  as  the  gar- 
den of  the  Lord,'  and  productive  of  all  things  fit  for  the  use  of  man, 
I  saw  when  '  there  came  two  angels  to  Sodom  at  even  ;  and  Lot  sat 
in  the  gate  of  Sodom,  and  made  them  a  feast'  (Genesis,  xix.) ;  and 
when  they  warned  him,  saying,  'Up,  get  you  out  of  this  place,  for  the 
Lord  will  destroy  this  city,"  I  saw  the  aged  patriarch,  with  his  two 
daughters,  hasten  from  Sodom  and  enter  into  Zoar,  his  wife  tarrying 
to  be  transformed  into  a  pillar  of  salt.  Finally,  I  saw  when  '  the  Lord 
rained  upon  Sodom  and  upon  Gomorrah  brimstone  and  fire  from  the 
Lord  out  of  heaven;  and  overthrew  those  cities,  and  the  plain, 
and  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  cities,  and  that  which  grew  upon  the 
ground'  (Genesis  xix.  25).  Now,  nearly  forty  centuries  afterwards, 
broken  from  my  native  mountains,  I  am  made  to  relate  my  Story  of 
the  Lump  of  Salt  !n 

As  I  could  not  find  it  in  my  heart  to  locate  here  the  names  of 
Freemasons,  I  concluded  to  dedicate  it  to  that  hearty  opponent  of  "  all 
secret  societies,"  President  Blanchard,  empowering  him  to  select 
nine  other  genial  spirits  like  himself,  and  occupy  the  whole  territory 
Much  good  may  it  do  them ! 

Two  hours  in  this  tormented  place  sufficed  me ;  and,  having  dressed 
and  eaten  -a  few  oranges,  I  started  for  the  Jordan,  desiring  to  visit 
the  traditional  place  of  our  Saviour's  baptism.  This  took  me  only 
forty-five  minutes,  for  I  rode  fast,  and  the  ground  was  level.  At  the 
first  point  of  striking  the  river-banks,  they  stand  about  twelve  feet 
above  the  stream,  and  are  caving  in  rapidly.  At  the  Pilgrim's  Ford, 
as  it  is  called,  I  spent  three  hours  taking  a  bath  to  wash  the  Dead  Sea 
impurities  from  me.  The  water  was  cool  and  pleasant  to  the  palate, 
though  somewhat  muddy.  Here  I  sung  the  hymns,  "  On  Jordan's 
Stormy  Banks,"  "  Shall  we  Gather  at  the  River  ?"  and  otters,  and  read 


BAPTIZING   SCENE.  345 

accounts  of  our  Saviour's  baptism,  given  in  the  four  Evangelists. 
This  is  probably  the  very  spot,  or  at  least  very  near  it,  where  this 
event  occurred.  A  party  of  British  naval  officers  was  just  leaving 
the  place,  with  whom  I  exchanged  a  few  words  of  greeting.  I  find 
this  class  of  men  always  social,  gentlemanly,  ready  to  respond  to  a 
friendly  salutation,  and,  as  a  friend  suggests,  "nothing  stuck  up  about 
them."  A  kingfisher  perched  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  stream 
enlinked  the  historical  Jordan  with  the  streams  and  swims  of  my 
youth.  A  theological  writer  says  "  all  orthodox  Christians  walk 
fondly  together  until  they  come  to  the  bank  of  the  Jordan  ;  at  the 
water's  edge  they  draw  the  line." 

I  cannot  record  a  tithe  of  the  solemn  reflections  that  moved  me 
during  my  memorable  hours  under  the  shady  banks  of  the  Jordan. 
My  Arab  servants  sat  just  above  me,  watching  my  movements,  won- 
dering why  the  howadji  abode  there  so  long,  and  hinting  occasion- 
ally, "  There  is  yet  six  miles  to  ride  before  we  reach  Jericho." 

I  thought  of  Jesus  in  the  rush 
Of  Jordan's  waters,  cool  and  good ; 

How  cheering  was  its  noontide  draught! 

Never  such  healthful  cup  I'd  quaffed ; 

So  Christ,  whose  presence  blest  its  wave, 

Health  and  refreshing  coolness  gave ; 
Then,  as  well-pleased,  cheered,  I  stood, 

This  voice  from  Jordan's  wave  I  heard : — 
"  The  stream  is  holy  to  our  baptized  Lord!" 

The  Jordan  weaves  itself  into  happy  memories.  A  writer  says : 
"This  flowing,  glittering  type  of  swift  death,  sweeping  humanity 
away  in  its  current,  is  so  interwoven  in  all  our  hymns  and  sacred 
poetry  as  the  border  of  the  promised  land,  the  heavenly  inheritance, 
that  I  wonder  no  poet  has  yet  kindled,  standing  here,  with  the 
thought." 

Lieutenant  Lynch  describes  the  baptizing  scene  at  the  Jordan 
thus :  "  In  all  the  wild  haste  of  a  disorderly  route,  Copts  and  Kus- 
siaus,  Poles,  Armenians,  Greeks,  and  Syrians,  from  all  parts  of  Asia, 
from  Europe,  from  Africa,  and  from  far-distant  America,  on  they 
came.  Men,  women,  and  children,  of  every  age  and  hue,  and  in 
every  variety  of  costume,  talking,  screaming,  shouting  in  almost  every 
known  language  under  the  sun.  They  dismounted  eagerly,  in  haste, 
disrobed  with  precipitation,  rushed  down  the  bank,  and  threw  them- 
selves into  the  stream."  I  can  appreciate  the  faith  with  which  these 


346  LITERARY   BIRD'S-NEST. 

ignorant  people  wash  here,  as  if  leaving  every  sin  behind  them.  It 
was  the  same  that  inspired  Sigurd  the  Crusader,  A.D.  1110,  whose  visit 
to  the  Jordan  is  told  in  these  lines : 

"  To  Jerusalem  he  came, 
He  who  loves  war's  noble  game ; 
All  sin  and  evil  from  him  flings 
In  Jordan's  wave ;  for  all  his  sins, 
Which  all  must  praise,  he  pardon  wins." 

As  I  read  the  affecting  passage — "the  Holy  Ghost  descended  in  a 
bodily  shape  upon  him"  (Luke  iii.  22) — I  found  it  pleasant  to  listen 
to  the  cooings  of  the  numerous  birds  of  that  class  that  inhabit  the 
shrubbery  on  each  side  of  the  river.  The  Arabian  prophet  Moham- 
med was  accustomed  to  have  a  tame  dove  sit  at  his  ear,  claiming 
that  the  bird  communicated  divine  precepts  to  him.  Perhaps  he 
borrowed  the  idea  from  the  passage  I  have  cited.  I  examined  a  nest 
of  this  bird  near  the  baptizing  place.  It  was  shallow  and  mean,  only 
a  few  sticks  and  straws  thrown  together  to  prevent  the  eggs  from 
rolling  out.  I  found  a  scrap  of  an  English  newspaper  in  it,  strangely 
out  of  place.  Probably  some  party  of  tourists  dropped  it.  I  can 
hardly  conceive  that  the  bird  selected  it  for  educational  purposes, 
And  with  this  fragment 
of  the  leaden  Times,  I 
found  a  scrap  of  some 
work  on  the  Elements 
of  Geometry,  which  con- 
tained the  following 
information,  singularly 
out  of  place  among  these 
willow  trees :  "  Therefore 
CD  is  equal  to  PQ.  But 
PQ  is  given:  therefore, 
the  point  D  and  the  per- 
pendicular DC  are  given, 
and,  consequently,  the 
point  C  is  given."  (But 
I  couldn't  (7  this!)  But 
now  appropriate  it  must 
have  sounded  to  the  BE  DOVF. 

doves  and  nightingales  to  hear  me  sini:  -Shall  MX  Gather  at  the 


MY  FIRST  NIGHTINGALE. 


347 


River  ?"  and  that  favorite  song  of  my  dear  Lottie,  "  Why  have  my 
Loved  Ones  Gone?" 

On  the  preceding  page  is  an  excellent  cut  of  the  Syrian  dove. 
The  familiar  leaf  of  the  willow  caught  my  eye  at  once  as  an  old 
friend,  the  agnus  castus  willow,  and  Isaiah's  "  willows  by  the  water- 
courses" (xliv.  4).  How  many  a  whistle  I  have  made  of  willow-twigs 
in  boyhood !  Can  I  do  less  here  than  to  carve  a  whistle  from  a  wil- 
low-bush, called  by  Hassan  sassaf  (the  Hebrew  was  tsaphtsapha, 
much  the  same),  and  cause  the  king-birds  yonder  to  fly  and  scream  at 
the  unusual  sound  ?  But  that  terrific  insect  the  hornet  is  here  before 
me,  busily  engaged  in  collecting  the  fuzz,  as  we  boys  used  to  call  it, 

for  his  paper-manufactory.  No 
wonder  Moses  was  afraid  of  the 
hornet,  and  used  it  (in  Deute- 
ronomy vii.  20)  as  an  object  of 
divine  threatenings  against  sin. 
I  was  once  stung  by  a  hornet 
on  my  neck,  nearly  to  death. 

But  I  must  relate  my  experi- 
ence with  a  nightingale.  I  was 
>  fully  prepared  to  find  nightingales 
''here.  Old  Sandys  (A.D.  1610)  had 
said :  "  Here  the  nightingales 
sing  more  than  elsewhere."  The 
Arab  poets,  referring  to  this  lo- 
cality,  had  sung,  in  their  fan- 
tastic way,  of  the  bulbul,  or 
nightingale:  "She  warbles  her 
enchanting  notes,  and  with  hei 


BULBUL,  OB  NIGHTINGALE. 


song  rends  the  thin  vests  of  the  rosebuds  and  the  rose."    A  modern 
poet  has  said,  in  the  same  spirit, 

"'Twas  like  the  notes,  half  ecstacy,  half  pain, 
The  bulbul  utters  ere  her  soul  depart, 
When,  vanquished  by  some  minstrel's  purer  art, 
She  dies  upon  the  lute  whose  sweetness  broke  her  heart" 

Up  to  this  time,  however,  I  had  never  seen  or  heard  a  nightingale 
While  sitting  here,  therefore,  my  feet  laving  in  the  swift  current 
reading  "  These  were  the  sons  of  Gad,  captains  of  the  host :  one  of  the 
'east  was  over  an  hundred,  and  the  greatest  over  a  thousand;  these 


348 


THE   CROWN   OF  THORNS. 


were  they  that  went  over  the  Jordan  in  the  first  month  (about  this 
time  of  year),  when  it  had  overflown  all  his  banks"  (1  Chronicles  xii. 
14),  and  thinking  of  those  valiant  Gaddites,  the  comrades  of  David 
in  his  time  of  trouble;  and  singing  one  of  my  own  old  verses 
commencing,  "From  Moab's  hills  the  stranger  comes,"  my  ears 
were  attracted  by  a  bird-song  of  a  note  and  quality  altogether  novel 
and  startling.  Following  it  up,  I  found  it  to  emanate  from  a  large 
bunch  of  the  pink  blossoms  of  the  oleander.  When  I  stirred  the 
bush,  out  flew  the  bird.  Voila!  here  he  is !  Not  to  say  a  handsome 
bird ;  but  my  own  loved  girls,  Sarah,  Kuth,  and  Ella,  do  not  touch  my 
ears  more  delightfully  with  their  innocent  songs  and  gayety  than 
did  the  bulbul  on  the  Jordan. 

The  acacia,  to  which  I  shall  give  a  larger  space  in  a  subsequent 
chapter,  abounds  here,  the  cut  giving  a  most  life-like  idea  of  it. 

Here,  also,  is  the  Christ's  Thorn 
(Ramnus  Spina  Christi),  called  by  an 
old  writer  "  spring  grass."  Among  the 
numerous  orders  more  or  less  directly 
connected  with  Holy  Land,  I  wonder 
we  have  had  none  entitled  The  Knight 
of  the  Sacred  Thorn.  What  an  array 
of  emblems  and  traditions  could  be 
made  to  surround  this  affecting  object ! 
Here  also  is  the  castor-oil  plant,  a  per- 
sistent shrub,  with  wood  as  hard  as 
poplar;  not  a  strange  thing  in  this 
country,  where,  as  in  Florida,  the  very 
blackberry  has  a  woody  stock.  Here 
once  grew,  although,  I  think,  not  now 
to  be  identified,  the  Balsam  of  Jericho, 
esteemed  precious  beyond  all  other 
tears  wept  by  balmy  trees.  Incisions  in 
the  bark  were  made,  not  with  steel,  but 
with  a  stone  instrument. 

As  to  the  Kiver  Jordan  itself,  every 
Bible  Dictionary  gives  dimensions,  etc.,  with  elaborate  care.  Its  way, 
from  the  Sea  of  Galilee,  sixty  miles  above,  is  made  long  and  trouble- 
some by  the  steep  descents  and  labyrinthine  windings,  falling  more 
than  700  feet  in  sixty  miles  of  latitude  (200  miles  as  the  channel 
goes).  The  Ohio  river  at  Louisville  falls  twenty-two  feet  in  two 


ACACIA. 


GALLOP   TO   JERICHO. 


34C 


miles,  eleven  feet  per  mile — quite  a  difference.  This  swiftness 
of  current  was  reckoned  one  of  the  greatest  obstacles  in  building  the 
noble  railway  bridge  erected  there  in  1870.  The  Tigris  is  called  by  a 
name  denoting  the  Arrow,  on  account  of  its  swiftness,  but  it  does 
not  equal  the  Jordan. 

It  was  a  gallop  across  the  plain  of  the  Jordan  to  Rika,  the  relics 
of  old  Jericho.  This  is  the  cicca  or  circle  of  rich  country  which  that 
extravagant  gallant  Marc  Antony  presented  Cleopatra.  The  once 
populous  city  of  Jericho  has  now  but  one  house,  independent  of-  a 
cluster  of  mud-hovels,  unworthy  the  name  of  human  habitations. 
Look  at  Eawson's  drawing  of  it 


VILLAGE  OF  JERICHO. 

See  the  large  two-story  stone  tower,  whose  owner,  Mustapha,  sheikh 
of  the  village,  is  brother  to  the  sheikh  at  Bethphage,  the  enterprising 
contractor  who  supplies  guards  to  travellers  visiting  this  valley.  On 
the  house-top  of  that  tower  I  was  accommodated  with  a  high,  rickety 
table,  upon  which  to  spread  my  blankets,  and  there  I  lay  with  the 
stars  of  Palestine  looking  down  upon  me  all  night.  The  Sheikh  Mus- 
tapha is  a  man  of  courtesy  and  considerable  dignity.  He  made  coffee 


350  VISIONS   ON  THE  HOUSETOP. 

for  me  and  served  me  with  his  own  hands.  When  I  expressed  a  wish 
to  collect  a  sackful  of  the  Spina  Christi  the  next  morning,  he  went 
out  and  cut  it  for  me  with  his  own  sword,  really  displaying  a  wish 
to  make  my  stay  at  Jericho  agreeable.  In  the  tremendous  row  be- 
tween him  and  his  neighbors,  which  is  a  part  of  the  Arab  entertain- 
ment at  every  place  I  visit,  Mustapha  preserved  his  self-respect ;  and  if 
he  grumbled  a  little  at  the  five-franc  piece  I  paid  him,  that  is  only  what 
custom  requires  him  to  do,  and  I  think  none  the  worse  of  him  for  it. 

Lying  awake  upon  my  blankets,  far  above  the  fleas  and  lice  of  the 
dwelling,  a  crowd  of  thoughts  occupied  my  mind.  Just  here,  said  I, 
was  the  house  of  Rahab,  whose  history  I  had  so  often  recounted  in 
the  degree  of  Heroine  of  Jericho  (Joshua  ii.).  Above  me,  on  the 
north,  are  the  fords  of  Jordan  that  witnessed  the  extermination  of 
the  Ephraimites.  The  site  of  Mount  Hermon,  100  miles  in  that 
direction,  connects  the  source  of  the  Jordan  with  its  mouth.  A  little 
west  is  the  Mount  of  Temptation.  At  the  gates  of  Jericho,  Jesus  re- 
stored the  blind  to  sight  Near  by,  Joshua  met  the  captain  of  the 
Lord's  host  The  monster  Herod  died  here,  his  foul  light  going  out 
in  great  horror  and  agony,  and  was  buried,  with  undeserved  ceremo- 
nials, in  that  round  hill  to  the  southwest  which  I  saw  this  morning 
from  the  top  of  Mount  Olivet.  A  few  miles  below  me  is  the  Dead 
Sea.  I  am  lying  here  in  a  chasm,  a  cleft  in  the  earth's  surface,  1,300 
feet  below  the  sea-level,  in  the  "  City  of  Palm-trees,"  which  now  has 
not  a  palm-tree  in  it.  So  I  meditate,  while  my  blood,  heated  by  the 
day's  journey,  cools  slowly  down ;  and  at  last,  as  the  morning  is  break- 
ing in  the  east,  I  sink  to  sleep,  the  choruses  of  the  Jericho  women 
sounding  in  my  ears  as  they  sing  and  dance  in  their  lascivious  sports 
for  the  entertainment  of  the  naval  officers,  who  fill  the  half-dozen 
tents  pitched  below  the  castle  walls. 

The  next  morning  (May  9)  I  take  a  seat  by  the  fountain,  and  all 
Jericho  gather  round  me.  They  smoke  and  make  themselves  com- 
fortable. I  read  and  write,  and  make  my  stay  profitable.  The  naval 
officers  are  gone  to  Jerusalem,  and  I  am  the  only  howadji  left  ir 
all  Jericho.  The  people  watch  with  breathless  interest  my  motions. 
My  manner  of  pecking  open  eggs  at  the  large  end  meets  their  hearty 
approbation.  So  does  my  way  of  peeling  oranges,  my  style  of  coffee- 
drinking,  teeth-picking,  winking  my  eyes,  and  other  personal  peculiari- 
ties. My  writing  puzzles  them ;  for  their  scribes  write  from  right  to  left, 
holding  the  paper  in  the  left  hand,  two  things  I  would  never  do. 
But  when  I  sing  a  verse  or  two  of  the  "  Level  and  the  Square,"  the 


MORNING   IN   JERICHO.  351 

Jerichoites  express  universal  admiration  of  Ossian  E.  Dodge's 
music  to  the  same.  Oh,  if  Dodge  was  here  to  do  it !  The  people  are 
easily  pleased.  The  women  come  to  the  fountain  a  dozen  at  a  time, 
with  water-skins ;  take  a  bold  stare  at  the  howadji  (these  Eiha  fe- 
males are  said  to  be  shamefully  immodest,  and  I  more  than  half  be- 
lieve it)  ;  fill  their  vessels  with  water,  and  lingeringly  depart.  I  take 
another  look  at  the  stone-tower,  where  I  watched  the  glittering  pro- 
cessions of  stars  all  last  night.  It  has  no  "  flax  under  the  roof,"  as 
in  the  days  of  Rahab,  and  I  could  discover  no  "  scarlet  cord  "  tied  in 
the  window.  Yet  there  was  a  good  pile  of  barley-sheaves  upon  it ; 
strong  battlements  raised  around  the  edge,  according  to  the  require- 
ments of  the  Mosaic  code,  and  the  women  of  the  house  were  sitting, 
a  pair  of  them  "  grinding  at  the  mill,"  as  in  Scriptural  days.  One  of 
the  wives  of  my  landlord  brought  upon  her  head  a  "  bundle  of  sticks  " 
for  fuel,  like  that  mentioned  in  Elijah's  visit  to  Sarepta  (1  Kings 
xvii.  8-24). 

In  approaching  the  village  last  evening  I  had  been  struck  with  the 
pastoral  character  of  the  scene.  From  every  direction  the  shepherd 
boys  and  girls  were  coming  in,  leading  their  flocks  of  sheep  and  goats, 
and  securely  housing  them  in  the  folds  fenced  by  impenetrable  piles 
of  Spina  Christi  (Christ's  Thorn),  which  forms  the  principal  shrub- 
bery here.  Women  were  gleaning  among  the  fields  of  barley  just 
reaped,  protected  in  large  masses  by  the  same  kind  of  fences.  Voices 
from  all  directions  were  calling  to  the  cattle  and  to  one  another,  an- 
swered by  the  plaintive  cries  of  kids  and  lambs.  The  scanty  fires, 
needful  for  cooking,  were  glaring  up  fiercely,  as  "  the  thorns  under  a 
pot "  are  said  to  do  in  the  Bible.  The  ground  underneath  sparkles 
with  salt.  The  ruins  of  that  ancient  landmark,  Bethhoglah,  rise  in 
the  south.  Even  now  (March,  1872)  the  whole  scene  is  indelibly 
inscribed  upon  my  memory  as  I  recall  it. 

But  the  noon-time  has  come.  It  is  high  12.  The  sun  is  hot  over 
the  sea  of  Sodom,  and  I  must  be  off,  or  stay  here  until  to-morrow. 
Receiving  a  mah  sallaharm,  or  Moslem  good-bye,  from  the  Sheikh  Mus- 
tapha,  I  mount  my  Arab  steed  and  move  to  the  great  fountain  (Ain 
Sultan),  about  a  mile  out  of  my  way.  My  guide  picks  some  fruit 
from  the  Spina  Christi,  a  yellowish  berry  about  as  large  as  a  hazel- 
nut,  and  gives  them  to  me,  naming  them  doom,  and  claiming  back- 
theesh.  They  taste  dry  and  insipid,  like  the  hawberry.  On  the  way,  I 
observe  a  thick  umbrageous  arbor,  formed  by  trailing  grape-vines 
over  poles.  These  remind  me  of  the  Scriptural  expression,  "  under  his 


552 


SULTAN. 


own  vine  and  fig-tree."  Looking  back,  I  am  struck  with  admiration 
at  the  beauty  of  the  situation  occupied  by  this  ancient  aty,  given  up 
now  to  a  few  families  of  the  vilest  refuse  of  the  earth. 

The  Great  Fountain  (Ain  Sultan)  is  truly  a  magnificent  outburst 
of  the  life-giving  fluid,  and  I  could  have  lingered  there  contentedly 
all  the  day.  It  is  strange  that  the  villagers  of  Kiha  do  not  move  their 
miserable  shanties  up  to  this  place,  instead  of  depending  for  their 
water-supply  upon  a  filthy  pool  fourteen  by  six  feet,  into  which  the 
waste  waters  drip,  whose  surface  is  covered  with  sticks  and  straws, 
and  having  stables  all  around  it,  emitting  nauseating  flavors.  The 
Ain  Sultan  might  supply  waters  for  a  city.  About  ten  yards  be- 
low it  is  a  grand  old  fig-tree  worthy  the  spot,  and  abundant  remains 
exist  to  prove  that  once  a  fine  edifice  covered  the  spring,  and  that  its 
waters  were  conducted  off  in  various  directions  by  regular  aqueducts 
for  irrigation  and  human  use.  It  was  not  what  we  would  call  cool. 
Water  never  is  cool  in  this  country  as  in  the  springs  of  America;  but 
it  was  "  sparkling  and  bright  in  its  liquid  light,"  and  truly  delicious. 
A  hard  lot  of  women  approached  me  there,  sisters  to  the  groups  that 
perambulate  Broadway  at  10  P.M.,  and  drove  me  away  in  disgust. 

The  largest  fountain  in  the  Holy  Land  is  the  one  at  the  head  of 
this  River  Jordan  ;  and  here,  near  its  mouth,  is  another,  copious  and 
beautiful  if  not  so  large.  It  was  a  good  time,  under  this  magnificent 
fig-tree,  to  write  up  some  notes  made  last  night  by  the  light  of  my 
candles,  on  the  house-top  of  Mustapha.  If  they  seem  desultory,  what 
else  could  you  expect  of  a  man  turning  over  every  five  minutes  to 
make  a  pencil  memorandum,  every  star  in  the  heavens  (metaphori- 
cally) cocking  down  its  eye  at  him  ;  as  if  to  say,  "  Capital  !  go  it,  old 
fellow  !  " 

I  was  welcomed  at  Jericho  bv  the  sheikh,  with  a  grace  that  a  king 
on  his  throne  could  not  excel.  (I  have  never  seen  a  king  on  his 
throne.)  He  wore  a  large,  loose  frock,  a  striped  handkerchief  around 
his  head  (that  needed  washing;  I  should  dislike  to  use  that  in  con- 
ferring the  Eastern  Star  Degree).  His  legs  were  bare  (and  barely 
decent  at  that).  He  had  sandals  on  his  feet  (if  I  know  what  sandals 
are,  and  I  am  sure  I  don't).  Finally,  his  beard  was  very  scanty,  and, 
like  my  own,  elegantly  twisted  up  in  short  knots.  You  need  not  pay 
him  anything,  unless  you  want  to.  But  you  had  better  want  to,  ox 
Mustapha  will  follow  you  all  the  way  back  to  Jerusalem,  and  haunt 
you  in  the  Holy  City  until  you  do.  What  I  mean  is,  he  never  charge* 
anything  for  his  accommodations.  I  shall  pay  him  five  francs  in  the 
morning,  and  I  know  he  will  curse  me  (in  Arabic)  the  balance  of  thi 


PAGES   FROM    MY    DIARY.  355 

Saturday  because  I  don't  give  him  ten.  (If  I  gave  him  ten,  he  would 
curse  me  for  twenty  ;  if  twenty,  for  thirty ;  if  thirty,  etc.,  etc.  That's 
the  way  they  do.)  The  value  of  sweet-,  cool  water  in  this  dry,  hot 
atmosphere,  that  exhausts  the  powers  of  perspiration  and  causes, 
great  suffering  from  thirst,  suggested  many  of  the  finest  figures  of 
the  prophets,  and  even  of  the  Divine  Teacher  himself.  Amongs'i 
the  females  of  this  mud-made  village  I  have  endeavored  to  recognize 
a  descendant  of  the  good  and  heroic  Eahab.  But,  alas !  the  women 
of  Jericho  have  nothing  in  common  with  heroism,  or  hospitality,  01 
any  other  virtue  that  I  know  anything  about.  The  town  is  notorious 
for  being  the  most  immoral  place  in  all  Palestine,  every  sin  of  ancieni 
Sodom,  it  is  said,  being  perpetrated  here.  Blear-eyed,  haggard,  pre- 
maturely old,  brazen,  and  vile,  the  figures  of  the  women  more  resem- 
ble the  horrid  phantoms  of  a  nightmare  than  the  pleasant  romance 
of  Eahab.  Here,  on  my  house-top,  let  me  lie,  face  upwards  (as 
some  day  I  shall  be  laid  under  acacia-sprigs  for  a  long,  long  slumber), 
and  view  these  Oriental  heavens,  crowded  with  fantastic  signs,  crabs 
and  fishes,  scorpions,  bulls,  and  rams,  young  ladies,  and  the  locks  of 
young  ladies'  hair.  Herod,  here,  in  his  extreme  death-pang,  might 
nave  written,  as  another  conqueror  wrote,  August  21,  1759,  to  his 
friend  Dr.  Argens :  "  The  torments  of  Tantalus,  the  pains  of  Prome- 
theus, the  doom  of  Sisyphus,  were  nothing  to  the  torments  I  suffer." 
Herod  and  Frederick  were  akin  at  more  than  one  point.  Here  come 
Castor  and  Pollux  in  their  turn,  recalling  the  figure-head  of  the  ship 
St.  Paul  sailed  in  from  Malta  (Acts  xviii.  11).  The  elder  wife  of 
my  landlord,  the  lady  of  the  castle,  who,  in  my  own  land,  would  be 
the  pride,  charm,  and  ornament  of  domestic  life,  is  simply  the  house- 
hold drudge.  Ragged,  haggard,  faded,  the  word  hag  is  the  only 
name  that  suits  her.  (That  word  hag,  by  the  way,  pronouncing  g 
soft,  in  Arabic,  is  a  term  for  holy;  not  so  in  English.)  Poor  creature  t 
How  she  jumps  when  the  ungallant  Mustapha  talks  to  her.  And 
how  he  does  scold.  I  never  address  a  dog  so  roughly.  Jupiter,  bright 
and  beautiful,  is  shining  just  above  the  summit  of  the  Mount  of 
Temptation ;  the  sky  is  clear  and  cloudless.  A  hawk,  fastened  by 
one  foot  to  a  basket,  is  my  disconsolate  companion  on  this  house-top. 
Oh,  the  eager  glances  he  casts  at  the  mountains  above!  I  ought,  in 
common  respect  for  bravery,  to  buy  him  and  release  him.  I  will  to- 
morrow morning.  The  quick  survey  of  his  fellows  as  they  screamed 
over  him  at  sundown,  and  the  despair  that  followed  as  he  tugged  in 
vain  at  his  shackles!  He  doesn't  sleep  a  wink  to-night,  but  pulls  and 
pulls  at  his  fetters.  Yonder  are  the  telegraphic  stations,  by  which 
the  first  observer  of  the  new  moon  on  Moab  communicated  the  news 
by  torches  to  the  priests  on  Moriah,  and  so  set  the  grand  ceremonials 
of  the  Passover  in  motion.  A  fine  star  is  just  now  coming  up  over 
them.  The  purity  of  the  atmosphere  brings  every  star  out  in  its 
turn.  Jupiter,  in  his  brilliancy,  suggests  new  comments  upon  the 
astral  images  of  Holy  Writ.  On  that  page  overhead  are  the  figures 
of  the  arithmetic  in  which  Abram  was  to  compute  the  number  of  hi? 

23 


354  PAGES   FROM    MY    DIARY. 

posterity  (Genesis  xv.  5).  "  Look  now  toward  heaven,"  said  God  to 
Abram,  "  and  tell  the  stars,  if  thou  be  able  to  number  them ;  so 
shall  thy  seed  be."  I  am  canopied  by  all  the  gorgeous  splendor  of 
this  Oriental  sky ;  I  am  honored  by  being  the  reporter  to  this  brilliant 
panorama  moving  over  my  head.  There  goes  a  brilliant  meteor  sail- 
ing across  to  the  southward,  full  fifty  degrees  high  ;  its  luminous  tail 
being  visible  for  several  seconds.  Satan  knew  he  had  conquered  the 
world  when  he  deluded  Eve.  Had  he  overcome  Jesus  on  the  Mount 
of  Temptation  yonder,  he  would  have  kept  the  possession  forever.  My 
host  is  a  respectable  fellow  enough,  and  endeavors  to  make  my  stay 
comfortable  ;  but  his  friends  and  companions  are  so  filthy  and  black 
that  they  might  be  "  brothers  to  dragons,  and  companions  to  owls. 
Their  skin  is  black  upon  them,  and  their  bones  burned  with  heat " 
(Job  xxx.  29).  The  noble  display  of  the  castor-oil  tree  that  I  saw 
to-day  is  in  itself  a  moving  spectacle.  I  hasten  to  remember  all  I 
know  about  the  bean,  and  pass  on :  in  Persia  it  is  used  for  lamp-oil ; 
in  Africa  the  virgins  dress  their  hair  with  it ;  in  America,  naughty 
boys  take  it  from  a  spoon.  Looking  upon  Mount  Nebo,  only  fifteen 
or  twenty  miles  in  the  southeast  I  hum  to  myself  the  lines  I  have  so 
often  sung  at  home,  amidst  the  dear  group  of  wife,  sons  and  daughters. 

"  Could  we  but  climb  where  Moses  stood, 

And  view  the  landscape  o'er, 
Not  Jordan's  stream,  nor  death's  dark  flood, 

Should  fright  us  from  that  shore." 

Mohammed,  hearing  me  sing,  climbed  up  on  the  roof  to  ask  me  if 
[  was  sick  !  So  poor  an  appreciation  have  these  Arabs  of  genuine 
music.  Here  are  the  Triones  of  Ursa  Major,  plowing  their  patient 
way  round  the  north  pole,  as  oxen  make  their  circuit  in  treading  out 
corn. 

"  In  the  bright  even-time, 

How  the  twinkling  host  rejoices ; 
Every  star  in  that  chime 
Made  a  melodv  sublime, 

Ere  the  biro's  tuned  their  voices." 

The  frowning  cliff's  above  me,  which  in  the  evening  sun  had  worn 
such  s  savage  and  forbidding  aspect,  look  cheerful  and  habitable  now. 
Vile  as  this  place  and  its  people  and  their  history  may  be,  the  force 
of  historical  associations  is  sufficient  to  triumph  over  it  all,  and 
make  Jericho  a  place  of  pilgrimage.  I  could  contentedly  stay  a 
week  here.  Even  Galen  travelled  through  Syria,  in  the  reign  of  the 
Antomnes,  in  search  of  the  opo-balsamum  of  Jericho,  and  of  the 
Dead  Sea  bitumen.  He  was  of  opinion  that  « the  watery  wine  of 
Palestine  is  good  to  cure  fevers."  How  affecting  to  me  the  thought 
that,  m  a  few  brief  years,  the  heavens  will  be  a  light  over  my  grave, 
as  now  around  my  path;  the  stars,  even  the  stars  of  God,  en  light- 
enmg  mv  sepulchre  (Isaiah  xiv.  13).  The  Arab  song  goes  on  below 
n«,  a  wild,  barbarous,  unearthly  monotone,  accompanied  by  regular 


THE   SNAKE-BITTEN.  355 

clapping  of  hands,  and  motions  of  the  body,  for  all  the  world  like  an 
Indian  dance.  Those  naval  officers  must  have  vast  powers  of  endur- 
ance. Here  the  great  Joshua  was  made  a  witness  to  the  people,  and 
•a  commander  of  the  people  (Isaiah  Iv.  4).  That  vile  woman,  Cleo- 
patra, who  justified  the  tremendous  words  of  Isaiah  (Ivii.  9),  debas- 
ing herself  even  into  hell,  greatly  coveted  this  little  plain  of  Jericho, 
so  rich  and  abounding.  God  has  made  of  this  city  an  heap  ;  of  this 
•defenced  city  a  ruin  ;  of  this  palace  of  strangers  no  city  (Isaiah  xxv. 
2).  But  now  the  seven  clear  stars  of  Arthur's  Round  Table  are 
becoming  dim. 

"  The  withered  moon's 

Smote  by  the  fresh  beam  of  the  reddening  east." 
Now,  the  Fellah  in  ladies  having  got  their  backsheesh  and  gone  to 
rest,  nothing  interrupts  the  lonely  solitude  but  the  chirping  of  crick- 
ets and  the  cry  of  frogs.  The  reddening  of  the  rosy  light  betokens 
.a  clear  morning  of  pure  air.  The  God  of  day  is  rising  on  Babylon, 
•sending  the  lions  of  that  ruined  site  to  their  repose ;  and  if  I  expect 
to  get  any  of  the  strength  that  cometh  from  sleep,  it  is  time  I  began. 
So  with  a  puff,  out  go  my  candles,  and  off  into  dreamland  I  embark. 

Turning  away  from  the  Fountain  of  Elisha,  I  was  accosted  by  a 
poor  fellow  who  had  been  bitten  the  night  before  by  a  snake.  The 
wound  was  in  the  junction  of  the  fore  and  middle  fingers  of  the  right 
hand.  In  that  hot  atmosphere  it  was  an  alarming  sight.  His  arm 
was  swollen  to  enormous  dimensions.  He  was  pale.  He  vomited 
and  hiccoughed.  In  fact,  there  was  but  one  step  between  him  and 
<leath.  One  of  my  servants  mounted  him  upon  his  own  horse,  and 
took  in  exchange  the  little  donkey  the  poor  fellow  had  ridden,  and 
so  we  all  pushed  forward  to  Jerusalem.  I  will  remark  here  that,  bad 
as  such  a  wound  must  be  in  the  Jordan  Valley,  as  soon  as  I  got  him 
into  the  cooler  atmdsphere  of  Jerusalem  he  began  to  mend,  and  in  a 
few  days  was  quite  recovered.  The  grateful  creature  then  haunted 
me  for  backsheesh  all  the  week. 

At  so  noted  a  historical  place  as  the  Circle  of  the  Jordan,  including 
the  Pilgrim's  Ford,  Jericho,  the  northern  end  of  the  Dead  Sea,  and 
the  Fountain  of  Elisha,  I  write  the  names  of  ten  worthy  Masons. 
In  the  nomenclature  of  our  lodges  I  find  Bezer  Lodge,  No.  155,  Iowa, 
the  locality  just  east  of  Jericho,  beyond  the  Jordan ;  Bethany  Lodge, 
No.  176,  Virginia,  the  village  a  few  miles  west;  Mount  Nebo  Lodge, 
No.  76,  Illinois,  and  No.  257,  New  York;  Pisgah  Lodge,  No.  32,  In- 
diana, and  No.  200,  North  Carolina,  the  summit  twenty  miles  in  the 
southeast.  Other  names  of  lodges  are  suggested  by  this  locality.  As 
our  distinguished  Brother  Kichard  Owen,  of  Indiana,  has  illuminated 
this  wild  region  with  a  genial  touch  of  geology,  I  place  hia  name 


356  WORTHLESS    RACE   OF    HGJsRS 

first  at  this  locality,  following  it  with  that  of  his  coadjutor,  Bcv.  C. 
Nutt;  then  by  Robert  Ramsay,  George  B.  Edwards,  E.  Wartield, 
Rev.  P.  C.  Ewer,  A.  Coloveloni,  Henry  L.  Palmer,  Robert  Rushing, 
Joseph  Trimble. 

Met  a  woman  with  a  heavy  water-skin  on  her  head,  and  a  heavier 
child  mounted  on  her  shoulder.  Yet  she  stepped  off  jauntily,  making 
her  three  miles  an  hour ;  and  her  little  boy  shook  his  fist  pleasantly 
towards  me,  suggesting  the  cruel  blow  he  would  inflict  upon  my  face 
were  his  muscles  as  strong  as  his  will.  As  soon  as  I  passed  out  of 
the  valley  I  began  to  see  the  caves  in  the  cliffs  of  Wady  Kelt,  where 
the  anchorites  of  the  early  centuries  of  our  era  scooped  out  prison 
homes  in  the  rocky  ramparts  of  these  awful  ravines.  Walter  Scott, 
in  the  Talisman,  has  given  a  good  idea  of  one  of  these  men,  a  man  of 
sin,  who  in  his  old  age  repented  and  "  past  into  the  silent  life  of 
prayer." 

It  was  well  said  of  these  fellows  that  they 

"  Left  human  wrongs  to  right  themselves, 
And  cared  but  to  pass  into  the  silent  life." 

If  ever  I  wanted  power  it  was  to  drive  all  the  idle,  worthless  race  ol 
monks,  with  which,  even  now,  Holy  Land  is  afflicted,  to  some  usefu. 
employment 

Looking  back  from  the  acclivity,  I  observe  the  ruins  of  the  old 
sugar-mills  built  here  800  years  ago  by  the  crusaders.  The  sugar- 
cane stalk  served  those  old  pilgrims  both  for  a  staff  and  as  a  store  of 
provision  in  emergencies.  They  had  a  sweet  tooth,  those  old 
Simons,  and  Fellows,  and  Hatches,  and  R  K.  Browns,  and  Fred. 
Webbers,  of  the  Beauseant,  in  the  tenth  century.  What  nowadays 
we  get  at  Willard's  on  the  half-shell,  they  sucked  from  the  end  of 
a  sugar-cane,  viz.,  Masonic  nutriment. 

The  sight  of  a  wolf  here  brings  to  mind  the  tribal  badge  of  Ben- 
jamin, to  which  this  territory  for  so  many  centuries  belonged.  The 
dying  father  declared  (Genesis  xlix.  27),  "  Benjamin  shall  raven  as 
a  wolf;  in  the  morning  he  shall  devour  the  prey,  and  at  night  he 
shall  divide  the  spoil."  Far  down  in  that  valley,  where  Elijah  hid, 
I  see  the  trees  I  have  just  left,  whose  feet  plunge  into  delightful 
water,  the  consolation  of  the  traveller.  An  old  pilgrim  described 
the  water  as  "  bitter  to  drink  and  productive  of  sterility  until  Elisha 
salted  it  and  blessed  it,  whereupon  it  became  sweet"  Just  below  it 
was  a  garden  which,  600  years  ago,  was  styled  the  Garden  of  Air  a- 


NEST   OF   YOUNG    RAVENS.  357 

ham,  but  no  signs  of  that  exist  at  present.  As  the  water  of  St. 
Helena  Island  is  famed  for  its  purity,  filtering  through  several  hun- 
dred feet  of  rocks  and  gravel,  so  with  this. 

This  country  indeed  is  what  the  Hebrews  styled  Shebarim,  "  the 
rough  and  broken  ground."  If  any  Royal  Arch  Chapter  will  perform 
its  work  here,  "  the  rough  and  rugged  way "  is  already  laid  out  for 
their  use.  In  these  crags  our  June-Saint,  John  the  Baptist,  was  se- 
questered from  the  abodes  of  men,  and  fed  on  such  wild  nourishment 
as  these  uninhabited  places  afforded  him. 

Now  I  pass  through  valleys  shut  in  by  rocks  and  desolate  moun- 
tains, and  find  the  heat  caused  by  the  sun's  rays  to  be  very 
oppressive. 

The  next  few  pages  are  only  to  be  read  by  those  who  have  children 
and  love  children's  stories.  I  have  told  the  incident,  always  with 
"  immense  applause,"  in  various  Sunday-schools,  and  insert  it  here 
as  my  contribution  to  the  Sunday-school  literature  of  the  day. 

THE  NEST  OF  YOUNG  RAVENS. 

When  Jesus  Christ  tells  us  not  to  think  of  what  we  shall  eat,  or 
what  we  shall  drink,  or  wherewithal  we  shall  be  clothed,  He  means 
that  He  will  think  of  these  things  for  us.  He  knows  what  we  want, 
and  how  much  we  want,  and  when  we  want  it.  He  made  us,  and  He 
knows,  even  better  than  we  do,  what  food  and  clothing  and  other 
things  we  need.  So  long  as  we  trust  in  Him  we  may  be  sure  He 
will  abundantly  supply  us.  In  one  of  the  Psalms,  David  says :  "  I 
have  been  young,  and  now  I  am  old ;  yet  have  I  never  seen  the  right- 
eous forsaken,  nor  his  seed  begging  bread."  I  can  say  the  same 
thing. 

In  coming  up  one  day  from  Jericho  to  Jerusalem,  I  was  very  forci- 
bly reminded  of  the  fact  that  God  feeds  all  his  creatures  with  what 
they  need.  I  will  tell  you  the  whole  story.  I  was  climbing  the  steep 
hill  by  the  side  of  Wady  Kelt,  the  same  I  believe  that  is  called  in 
the  Bible  The  Brook  Cherith,  and  if  so,  it  is  the  place  where  Elijah 
was  concealed  when  King  Ahab  sought  his  life,  and  where  the  ravens 
fed  him  from  day  to  day,  and  preserved  him  from  starving.  As  I  got 
about  half  way  up  the  hill  I  heard  some  loud  screams  far  down  in 
the  ravine  below  me,  and  I  knew  that  it  was  a  nest  of  young  ravens. 
Ravens  are  nearly  the  same  as  crows  ;  their  cry  is  the  same,  and  you 
know  how  loud  and  harsh  a  noise  a  nest  of  young  crows  will  make. 
Those  that  I  heard  were  making  the  cry  of  hunger.  It  was  noon. 
They  had  had,  I  suppose,  no  breakfast.  The  poor  fledgelings  were 
lying  in  thoir  nest,  the  old  birds  having  gone  away.  The  day  waa 
hot.  The  place  was  lonely.  The  little  creatures  could  not  get  out 
to  feed  themselves  ;  and  even  if  they  had  they  did  not  know  what  to 
eat,  nor  where  to  find  food  suitable  for  them. 


358  WILL  GOU    FEED   THEM  ? 

As  I  stopped  and  looked  down  into  their  nest,  five  hundred  feet 
below  me,  I  thought  of  the  Bible  passage,  "  God  heareth  the  young 
ravens  when  they  cry."  Did  God  really  hear  those  poor  little  scream- 
ing birds?  Could  it  be  that  God  was  so  near  to  that  lonely,  hot,  dis- 
agreeable place  as  to  hear  cries  of  hunger  from  a  nest  of  young 
birds?  It  was  even  so.  Five  hours  before,  God  had  sent  their  father 
and  mother  clear  across  the  valley  of  the  Jordan,  and  down  by  the 
river-side,  to  procure  food  for  them.  The  black,  wise  creatures  knew 
where  to  go  to  find  it.  God  had  taught  them.  They  were  God's 
messengers,  God's  providers,  God's  stewards  for  that  nest  of  hungry, 
clamorous  crows.  They  went  in  haste,  flying  over  Elisha's  fountain 
and  over  ruined  Jericho,  where  I  was  sitting  at  that  very  time,  writing 
my  notes  by  a  cistern  of  water,  surrounded  by  fifty  lazy  Arabs ;  and  over 
the  thickets  of  thorn-bushes,  and  willows,  and  oleanders,  and  cane- 
brakes  ;  and  so  on  down  to  the  Jordan,  where  John  baptized  ChrisL 
It  is  a  journey  of  eight  miles, "  as  the  crow  flies."  And  as  I  looked 
down  into  that  screaming  nest  of  crows,  I  knew  what  the  little  crea- 
tures did  not  know — that  their  Heavenly  Parent  was  giving  to  their 
earthly  parents  wisdom,  and  wings,  and  strong  bills,  and  loving 
hearts,  to  supply  their  necessities. 

Still  those  loud,  harsh  cries  were  kept  up.  Would  father  and 
mother  never  come  ?  It  was  time.  The  sun  was  so  hot  that  all  other 
birds  had  concealed  themselves  in  shadowy  places.  Even  the  sneak- 
ing wolf  that  I  had  seen  an  hour  before  was  only  hurrying  to  some 
old,  vacant  tomb  on  the  hillside,  where  he  might  lie  and  pant  until 
dark.  I  began  to  be  afraid,  not  that  the  parent  ravens  had  forgotten 
their  duty,  but  that  somebody  might  have  shot  them  down  by  the 
river.  A  party  of  English  sailors  were  there  this  morning,  popping 
their  guns  at  everything  they  could  see.  As  I  thought  of  this  I  felt 
sad ;  tor  I  knew  that  nobody  else  would  care  for  the  little  birds,  and 
they  would  starve  to  death.  I  got  off  my  horse ;  went  down  the 
hillside  about  a  hundred  steps ;  found  the  shadow  of  a  great  rock  ;. 
lay  down  in  it ;  took  out  my  pocket-Bible,  and  determined  to  wait 
if  need  be  an  hour  longer,  or  until  those  little  creatures  had  had 
their  breakfast. 

And  there  I  read  verse  after  verse,  proving  that  God  is  the  great 
provider.  He  feeds  the  "  fowls  of  the  air,"  the  "  young  lions,"  every- 
thing that  He  has  made.  Never  a  mouth  but  what  there  is  food  to 
put  in  it — "  and  shall  He  not  much  more  feed  you '?" — Just  as  I  got  to- 
that  passage,  a  shadow  passed  before  my  eyes.  I  looked,  and  here 
were  the  old  ravens  coming  with  food  for  their  little  birds.  The  lit- 
tle birds  had  discovered  them  before  I  did,  and  were  crying  louder 
than  ever.  The  old  ones  flew  slowly ;  for  they  were  carrying  large 
pieces  of  some  kind  of  food  in  their  mouths,  and  the  weather  was 
very  hot.  But  straight  to  the  nest  they  flew,  straight  as  an  arrow. 
The  noise  of  their  hungry  children  ceased,  and  I  knew  their  little 
mouths  were  filled.  A  few  minutes  passed  in  silence  ;  then  I  heard 
the  old  one  give  a  hoot  of  satisfied  work,  and  all  was  still.  God  had 


KHAN   OF   THE    G.    8.  359 

'•'  heard  the  young  ravens  as  they  cry,"  and  had  sent  them  plenty  of 
food. 

Climbing  up  the  hill  again,  I  wonder  whether  the  great  grand- 
mothers of  those  noisy  crows  brought  pieces  of  the  tongue  of  the 
haughty  Nicanor  to  feed  their  young  ones.  A  raven  lives,  I  believe, 
five  nundred  years,  and  Nicanor  was  killed  only  about  two  thousand 
years  ago.  His  tongue,  it  is  said,  in  2  Maccabees  xv.  33,  was  given 
by  pieces  unto  the  fowls,  while  his  "vile  head  and  his  hand,  which 
with  proud  brags  he  had  stretched  out  against  the  temple,"  were 
hung  up  before  Jerusalem. 

While  I  waited  upon  my  young  crows,  my  guard  rode  on  ahead  to 
a  place  I  had  resolved  to  visit,  and  lay  down  to  sleep.  This  was  his 
tabernacle  of  a  shadow  in  the  day-time  of  the  heat  (Isaiah  iv.  6) ; 
the  khan  or  inn  of  the  good  Samaritan,  as  in  Luke  x.  Near  the  ruins 
of  this  khan  there  is  a  yhudeer,  or  pool  of  rain  water,  warm,  and  so 
impregnated  with  the  salts  that  abound  in  this  soil  as  to  be  almost 
unpalatable.  Not  far  from  the  old  khan  of  the  good  Samaritan 
stood  th&  stone  Bohan  ben-Reuben,  as  in  Joshua  vi.  6.  It  was  on  the 
boundary  of  the  tribes  of  Judah  and  Benjamin.  Here  a  party  was 
attacked  and  plundered,  in  1820,  as  every  book  on  Holy  Land  since 
written  has  said. 

Kesting  for  an  hour  in  this  little  cave  hard  by,  the  ancient  "  Inn" 
of  the  good  Samaritan,  I  occupied  the  time  in  investigating  the  uses 
made  in  Scripture  history  of  clefts  and  caves,  and  the  symbolical 
application  of  the  same.  In  a  future  chapter  the  subject  shall  be 
renewed. 

The  name  of  this  place,  or  at  least  the  man  who  immortalized  it, 
is  found  in  the  names  of  many  American  and  English  lodges,  as  for 
instance,  Good  Samaritan  Lodge,  No.  174,  Kentucky;  No.  104, 
Alabama ;  No.  479,  England,  etc.  It  accords  with  the  plan  of  the 
present  volume,  therefore,  to  recognize  and  extend  the  sacred  associa- 
tion by  locating  ten  Masonic  names  here,  viz.,  Ossian  E.  Dodge,  David 
Vinton,  George  P.  Morris,  Kob.  Morris,  Henry  Tucker,  J.  D.  "Web- 
ster, John  C.  Baker,  Percival,  Burns,  Thomas  L.  Power — names 
associated  with  the  poetry  and  music  of  Masonic  literature. 

Passing  on  to  Jerusalem,  I  drew  rein  not  again  until  I  reached  the 
water-fount  below  Bethany.  Seated  for  an  hour  at  this  Fountain  of 
the  Apostles,  as  they  called  it,  my  privacy  was,  of  course,  invaded. 
First,  by  a  lot  of  harvesters,  who  left  their  work  and  came  across  the 
valley,  thinking  to  make  backsheesh  out  of  me.  Secondly,  by  a  blind 
beggar,  who  has  been  sitting  here,  I  suppose,  ever  since  yesterday 
morning,  waiting  for  me  to  come  back.  His  appeals  I  soon  stopped  by 
a  bit  of  money  and  the  balance  of  my  oranges ;  and  he  is  even 
good  enough  to  go  away  out  of  my  seeing,  hearing,  touching, 
tasting,  and  smelling.  Shall  I  ever  have  a  better  time  to  summon 
up  inspired  memories,  suggested  by  this  poor  blind  fellow,  who 
has  so  long  "wandered  in  darkness,"  as  certain  incorrect  rituals 
have  it?  Here  they  are,  then;  come  out,  pursy  note-book;  roll 


3GU  IMPERIAL   SALEM. 

forth,  facile  pencil!  Hassan  throws  up  his  hands  in  anguish, 
knowing  that  he  is  stuck  for  an  hour  here,  and  goes  incontinently 
to  sleep.  (N.  B.  Note-taking  and  checker-playing  with  me  are 
vanities.)  And  here  we  are:  "The  blind  man  of  Palestine  wuika 
in  obscurity  and  darkness"  (Isaiah  xxix.  18),  deprived  of  the  pleas- 
urable thrill  and  excitement  which  are  the  lot  of  others.  He  follows 
the  traveller,  groping,  as  once  they  followed  Jesus  at  the  base  of  this 

hill  (Matthew  ix.  27) But  here  I  am  interrupted  by 

the  English  sailors  just  up  from  Joppa.  They  need  all  this  space, 
and  more,  to  swig  the  last  quart  in  their  demijohn.  Borne  on  an 
ass,  the  cork  of  that  receptacle  has  been  out  ever  since  yesterday 
morning,  and  the  poor  fellows  look  it.  If  they  don't  need  the  ship's 
surgeon  for  a  week  or  two,  I  miss  a  conjecture.  Eefusing  to  drink 
with  them  on  the  (false)  plea  that  "  I  had  some  of  iny  own,"  I  has- 
ten away  and  arrive  at  my  hotel  at  about  4  o'clock.  Have  a  difficulty 
with  my  guard  upon  the  question  of  backsheesh,  and  then  retire  early 
to  rest,  thankful  that  my  trip  to  the  Dead  Sea  and  the  Jordan  has 
terminated  so  well.  Coming  in  sight  of  the  city,  from  the  lofty  sum- 
mit of  Olivet,  Pope's  splendid  couplets  occurred  to  memory,  and  with 
them  I  close  the  chapter. 

Rise,  crowned  with  light,  imperial  Salem,  rise ; 

Exalt  thy  towering  head,  and  lift  thine  eyes ; 

See  a  new  race  thy  spacious  courts  adorn, 

See  future  sons  and  daughters  yet  unborn, 

In  thronging  ranks,  on  every  side,  arise, 

Demanding  life,  impatient  for  the  skies  ; 

See  barbarous  nations  at  thy  gates  attend, 

Walk  in  thy  light,  and  in  thy  temple  bend ; 

See  thy  bright  altars  thronged  with  prostrate  kings, 

And  heaped  with  products  of  Sabaean  springs. 

For  thee,  Idume's  spicy  forests  grow, 

And  seeds  of  gold  in  Ophir's  mountains  glow; 

See  heaven  its  sparkling  portals  wide  display, 

And  break  upon  thee  in  a  flood  of  day. 

No  more  the  rising  sun  shall  gild  the  morn, 

Nor  evening  Cynthia  fill  her  silver  horn ; 

But  lost,  dissolved  in  thy  superior  rays, 

One  tide  of  glory,  one  unclouded  blaze, 

Pervades  thy  courts  :  the  LIGHT  himself  shall  shine 

Revealed,  and  God's  eternal  day  be  thine ; 

The  seas  shall  fail,  the  sky  in  smoke  decay, 

Rocks  fall  to  dust  and  mountains  melt  away ; 

But  fixed  His  word,  His  promise  still  remains, 

Thy  realm  forever  lasts,  thine  own  MESSIAH  reigns. 


DIVISION  EIGHTH.— JERUSALEM. 


The  mind,  bewildered  with  the  mighty  revolutions  and  desolations  which  the 
history  of  Jerusalem  has  revealed,  delights,  at  last,  to  take  in  walls,  churches, 
houses,  and  surrounding  hills  as  tangible  objects;  at  last  Jerusalem  is  removed 
from  the  region  of  fancy  to  that  of  fact. 

Yes  ;  if  the  intensities  of  hope  and  fear 
Attract  us  still,  and  passionate  exercise 
Of  lofty  thought,  the  way  before  us  lies 
Distinct  with  signs. 

That  shining  bitter  water  that  engulfs  the  guilty  cities  of  the  plain. 

The  city,  once  sacred  and  glorious,  elected  by  God  for  his  seat,  and  seated  in 
the  midst  of  the  nations,  like  a  diadem  crowning  the  head  of  the  mountains 
the  place  of  mysteries  and  miracles. 

Why  left  a  widow  !  oh,  what  scars  disgrace 

Thy  looks  !  who  thus  hath  hacked  thy  sacred  face  f 


MITE  OF  HEROD  ARCHELAU8.     B    C.  4  TO  A.  D.  6. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 


THE  SURROUNDINGS  OF  JERUSALEM. 

HE  literature  of  Palestine  is  in  want  of  a  good  work  on  the 
various  sieges  and  assaults  to  which  Jerusalem  was  sub- 
jected, from  its  capture  by  Joshua,  B.C.  1455,  to  that  last 
and  awful  night  of  the  assault,  A.D.  70,  so  graphically 
described  by  Josephus,  which  recalls  the  prophetic  words 
written  eight  centuries  before:   "Confused    noise,  and    garments 
rolled  in  blood "  (Isaiah  ix.  5).     Such  a  work  should  include  tne 


ALBERT   L  BAW9ON,  ORIENTAL  ARTIST. 


several  captures  to  the  present  time.     Written  in  the  light  of  mill- 
tary  experience,  this  volume  would  give  a  better  idea  of  the  sur- 


THE   SEVENTH  MASONIC   LOCALITY.  365 

roundings  of  Jerusalem,  to  which  I  devote  the  present  chapter,  than 
all  the  "memorandums"  of  tourists. 

The  seventh  and  last  of  the  grand  Masonic  localities  that  these 
articles  are  designed  to  identify  and  describe,  is  the  City  of  Jerusalem, 
upon  which  sacred  place  my  longing  eyes  were  first  directed,  as  I 
have  already  written,  on  Sunday,  May  3,  1868.  My  assistant  had 
been  detailed  to  this  point  of  labor  several  weeks  earlier,  and  had 
busied  himself  in  collecting  a  large  quantity  of  relics  and  specimens, 
designed  for  the  cabinets  of  the  zealous  craft  at  home.  This  enabled 
me,  after  my  arrival,  to  give  almost  undivided  attention  to  sight- 
seeing and  note- taking  in  the  city  and  vicinity.  The  season  of  the 
year  was  highly  favorable,  the  weather  being  a  happy  medium 
between  cold  and  heat;  days  warm,  nights  cool;  both  pleasant.  The 
throngs  of  pilgrims,  who  block  up  the  narrow  streets  during  the 
months  of  April  and  May,  had  departed.  I  had  ordered  my  horses 
through  to  this  place  by  land,  so  that  I  was  not  embarrassed  for  the 
means  of  locomotion.  Altogether,  my  stay  in  Jerusalem  and  its 
surroundings  was  one  of  unmingled  enjoyment  and  profit. 

As  my  whole  volume,  thus  far,  has  been  only  prefatory,  so  to 
speak,  to  the  present  division,  because  chiefly  describing  the  materials 
(and  the  localities  whence  derived  and  through  which  transferred), 
of  the  Temple  once  erected  at  Jerusalem,  1  must  now  give  large 
space  and  ample  illustrations  of  the  sacred  metropolis  itself,  towards 
which,  in  the  days  of  its  gold  and  glory,  all  people  brought  their 
treasures  on  the  bunches  of  camels,  and  the  Lord  of  Hosts  came 
down  to  fight  for  Mount  Sion,  and  for  the  hill  thereof  (Isaiah 
xxx.  and  xxxi).  Even  now,  although  Sion  is  a  plowed  field,  and 
the  foxes  (jackals)  walk  upon  it  (Lamentations  v.  18),  there  is 
enough  to  awaken  all  latent  enthusiasm  in  the  Masonic  traveller;  and 
by  the  aid  of  engravings,  from  the  faithful  hand  of  Professor  A.  L. 
Rawson,  whose  portrait  heads  this  chapter,  I  hope  to  leave  nothing 
that  is  important  in  darkness.  But,  as  I  said  in  my  preface,  though 
the  holiest  of  holy  ground  is  Jerusalem,  yet  the  writer  must  use 
simple  language  if  he  would  make  the  proper  impression  on  the 
reader's  mind.  In  1840,  when  the  English  and  French  were  having 
their  own  will  in  Palestine,  the  English  engineers  came  up  from 
Joppa,  and  made  an  accurate  and  most  valuable  plan  of  this  city,  to 
which  I  am  indebted  for  many  of  my  facts. 

But,  while  acknowledging  this,  no  American  should  forget  how 
much  we  are  all  indebted  to  Dr.  J.  T.  Barclay,  the  American  mis- 


366 


THE   DAMASCUS   GATE. 


iionary  at  Jerusalem.  His  close  observations  of  facts,  and  conscien 
tious  adherence  to  truth,  in  his  long  and  patient  labors  in  exploring 
the  city,  give  us,  in  his  volume,  The  City  of  the  Great  King,  all  that 
can  be  desired  on  the  subject.  Captain  Warren  told  me  that  the 
three  best  works  in  his  possession,  relative  to  Jerusalem  and  the 
Holy  Land,  are  American,  viz.,  Thomson's  Land  and  Book,  Robinson's 
Biblical  Researches,  and  the  work  of  Barclay,  just  referred  to.  It  is 
a  pity  the  work  has  been  allowed  to  go  out  of  print. 

In  giving  the  surroundings  of  this  city,  I  have  regard  to  the  in- 
junction of  the  Psalmist,  "  to  walk  around  "  Jerusalem,  that  I  may 
"  tell  it "  to  those  who  come  after  me.  Few  places  are  so  well  situated 
for  a  reconnoissance  as  this,  being  circumscribed  on  three  sides  by 
hills  higher  than  the  place  itself — a  fact  to  which  David  makes  a  fine 
allusion  in  Psalm  cxxv.  2:  "As  the  mountains  are  round  about 
Jerusalem,  so  the  Lord  is  round  about  his  people."  I  commence  this 
survey,  for  convenience  sake,  on  the  north  side,  from  Mount  Scopus. 
Here  that  vile  collection  of  homely,  massive  structures,  the  Russian 


THE   DAMASCUS   GATE   OF   JERUSALEM. 

convent,  conceals  the  view  on  the  right.  Directly  before  us  is  the 
knob,  or  swelling  ground,  to  which  a  number  of  writers,  with  good 
judgment,  have  applied  the  name  of  Calvary,  or  Golgotha,  conceiving 
it  to  be  the  spot  where 

"  The  Lord  of  all  things  made  himself 
Naked  of  glory." 


TOMB   OF   THE   KINGS. 


367 


Immediately  below  Golgotha  is  the  traditional  cave  of  Jeremiah, 
where,  it  is  fabled,  he  wrote  his  Lamentations,  from  whence  Burns 
derived  his  lamentable  screed,  "  Man  was  made  to  mourn."  A  little 
to  the  left  of  this,  the  northeast  corner  of  the  city  appears  like  a 
rambling  agricultural  village,  the  vacant  places  grown  up  with 
immense  hedges  of  the  prickly  pear.  The  gate  next  to  us  is  the 
Damascus  Gate  (Bab-es-Shems),  of  which  I  give  a  drawing. 

On  the  left  (east  of  this  gate)  there  is  an  opening  under  the  wall, 
which  conducts  us  to  the  great  quarry,  to  be  described  in  a  future 
chapter.  Still  further  east  is  Herod's  Gate,  now  permanently  closed. 
Beyond  the  wall  rises  the  lofty  dome  of  the  Mosque  of  Omar  (im- 
properly so  called),  the  modem  representative  of  Solomon's  Temple. 
This  point  of  view  is  probably  the  one  taken  by  Titus  for  his  first 
observation  of  Jerusalem,  and  for  the  establishment  of  his  military 
camp,  though  some  writers  set  the  camp  a  quarter  of  a  mile  further 
west,  and  a  little  nearer  the  city.  All  around  are  small  piles  of  me- 


J)OOU    OF    A    TO -MB. 


morial  stones  (three,  five,  seven,  nine,  eleven  or  more),  setup  by  pilgrims 
as  mnemonics  to  recall  their  first  or  last  view  of  the  Holy  City.  We 
will  erect  our  monument  likewise,  and  endeavor  to  imagine  the 
reconnoissance  made  by  Titus,  so  graphically  described  by  Josephus 


368 


TOMBS   AND   THEIR   TENANTS. 


( Wars,  II.  xix.  4,  and  v.  2,  3).  But,  in  speaking  of  Josephus  in  the 
presence  of  yonder  group  of  Israelites,  we  will  do  it  "  with  bated 
breath,"  for  every  Jew  considers  Josephus  the  Benedict  Arnold  of 
the  Roman  war. 

All  around  us  here  are  the  ruins  of  the  country-houses  and  happy 
homes  of  the  ancient  people.  Even  now  the  malaria  compels 
foreigners  to  reside  outside  the  city  through  the  summer  months; 
and  there  is  no  better  proof  than  the  number  and  character  of  these 
antiquities,  in  the  suburbs  of  Jerusalem,  of  the  former  existence  of 
a  wealthy,  flourishing,  and  powerful  people  here.  It  must,  indeed, 
have  enjoyed  an  overflowing  population,  whose  residences  extended 
great  distances  around  the  central  city.  All  the  expressions  of  en- 
thusiastic writers  in  the 
olden  time  confirm  this 
belief.  "  Zion,  ornament 
of  a  ruined  world ;  bright 
star  in  the  midst  of  a 
gloomy,  stormy  night,  in 
the  pathless,  troubled 
ocean;  until  the  sun  of 
righteousness  shall  arise, 
and  discover  to  our  long 
ing  eyes  the  port  of  endless 
rest."  So  expatiates  one 
of  the  most  eloquent. 

In    this    vicinity    lies 
that  celebrated  relic,  The 
Tombs     of    the    Kings, 
whose  entrance,  before  De  Saulcy  cleared 
away  the  debris,  a  few  years  since,  had  an 
appearance  as  in  the  cut. 

The  sculpture  over  the  entrance  of  this 
tomb,  although  now  exceedingly  muti- 
lated, is  very  beautiful.  It  represents 
large  clusters  of  grapes  between  garlands 
of  flowers,  interspersed  with  Corinthian 
capitals  and  other  decorations,  below  which 
is  a  tracery  of  flowers  and  fruits  extending 
PLAN  OF  ANCIENT  TOMB,  quite  across  the  portal,  and  hanging  down 
along  the  sides.  It  is  considered  to  be  the  finest  specimen  of  sculp 


INTERIOR  OF  A   TOMB. 


THE   SIDONIAN   SARCOPHAGUS. 


369 


ture  around  Jerusalem.  In  the  walls  recesses  are  laboriously  cut 
out  for  the  reception  of  sarcophagi.  I  append  a  drawing  of  the 
interior  of  an  ancient  tomb,  but  will  postpone  the  description  to 
a  future  chapter. 


SARCOPHAGUS. 

When  many  people  and  strong  nations  shall  come  to  seek  the 
Lord  of  Hosts  in  Jerusalem,  and  to  pray  before  the  Lord  (Zeph.  viii.  22) 
may  we  not  expect  that  the  Jews 
will  clear  out  and  reconstruct  these 
sacred  houses  of  the  dead,  and  re- 
store them  to  former  uses?  The 
following  is  an  engraving,  from  a 
photograph,  of  a  sarcophagus  now 
in  the  Louvre,  Paris,  taken  by  De 
Saulcy  from  the  tomb.  I  place  it 
in  contact  with  a  celebrated  sar- 
cophagus, found  about  twenty  years 
since,  near  Sidon,  now  also  among 
the  antiquities  of  the  Louvre. 

The  manner  in  which  the  heavy 
stone-doors  of  these  tombs  were 
made  to  turn,  will  be  seen  in  thig 
cut  of  ancient  stone-hinges. 

SARCOPHAGUS  AT  SIDON. 


THE   TENTH    LEGION". 


STONE   HINGES. 


We  pass  now  along  the  neck  of  the  ridge  connecting  Mt  unt  Sco- 
pus with  Mount  Olivet,  and  take  our  stand  near  the  (improperly 

called)  Church  of  Ascension. 
This  is  admittedly  the  best  point 
of  view  from  which  to  study  Jeru- 
salem. Here  Mr.  Church,  whose 
paintings  of  Califoruian  and  Al- 
pine views,  and  the  Falls  of 
Niagara,  had  placed  him  among 
the  very  first  of  living  artists,  took 
his  sketch  of  Jerusalem,  a  few 
weeks  before  I  was  here,  which  has 
since  developed  into  a  $32,000 
picture.  I  met  this  modest  and 
diligent  painter  at  Beyrout,  and 
watched  with  admiration  the  works  of  his  life-giving  pencil. 

Our  view  from  this  point  comprehends  a  very  large  range  of  vision 
westward  and  northward ;  and  we  imagine  the  soldiers  of  the  Roman 
Tenth  Legion  (a  kind  of  crack  New  York  Seventh  Regiment),  who 
•were  encamped  here  for  a  number  of  months  during  the  memorable 
siege,  recounting  to  hearers,  in  their  old  age,  all  the  objects  that  met 
the  eye  from  this  observatory.     Below  us  is  an  old  square  tower,  used 
now,  I  believe,  in  summer-life,  by  a  family  of  foreigners.     The  point 
•of  Absalom's  Tomb  peers   slightly  over  the   last  ridge  next    the 
valley  of  Jehoshaphat.     That  inclosure  of  about  one  and  a  half  acres, 
with  its  whitewashed  walls,  ten  feet  high,  is  the  Garden  of  Geth- 
«emane !     It  contains  eight  vast  olive-trees,  whose  enormous  roots 
stand  high  above  the  ground.    Near  it  is  the  opening  of  the  (apoc- 
ryphal) Tomb  of  the  Holy  Virgin,  adorned  with  lamps,  flowers, 
pictures,  etc.,  the  ordinary  furniture  of  a  Latin  chapel.    And  here  I 
would  remark  that,  in  visiting  what  are  considered  as  the  Jewish 
tombs  at  Jerusalem,  as  distinguished  from  the  Phoenician  sepulchres, 
which  I  saw  in  such  numbers  along  the  cliffs  at  Gebal,  opposite  Sidon, 
"Tyre,  etc.,  I  have  been  careful  to  bear  in  mind  the  radical  differences 
between  the  funeral  rites  of  the  two  peoples.    Those  of  the  Jews 
were  marked  with  the  same  simplicity  that  characterized  all  their 
religious  observances.    The  body  was  washed  and  anointed,  wrapped 
in  a  clean  linen  cloth,  and  borne  without  any  funeral  pomp  to  the 
jgrave,  where  it  was  laid  without  any  ceremonial  or  form  of  prayer. 
This   severe  simplicity  was    carried  into  the  preparation  of   their 


BIRDS   OF   JERUSALEM.  371 

sepulchres,  which  were  always  deep,  and  capable  of  being  closed  and 
sealed  at  the  mouth.  The  Phoenicians  seemed  invariably  to  use  the 
sarcophagus  or  stone  coffin,  which,  being  in  itself  hermetically  sealed 
and  containing  an  embalmed  body,  could  be  laid  in  a  shallow  cavity 
(called  loculus),  or  even  elevated,  like  the  tomb  of  King  Hiram,  far 
above  the  surface  of  the  ground,  upon  the  very  top  of  a  sepulchral 
monument,  without  danger  of  giving  out  offensive  odors.  All  purely 
Jewish  rock-cut  tombs  may  be  recognized,  it  is  thought,  from  this 
national  difference  of  the  deep  loculus  (or  grave).  To  this  is  referred 
the  passage  in  John  xi.  39,  "  take  away  the  stone."  Had  Lazarus 
been  laid  in  a  Phoenician  tomb,  a  heavy  lid  must  have  been  removed 
to  reach  his  body;  not  to  say  that  the  ceremony  of  embalming, 
which  occupied  many  days,  and  occasioned  the  removal  of  most  of 
the  internal  parts  of  the  body,  would  have  changed  the  entire  nature 
of  the  miracle.  But  lying  in  the  condition  in  which  he  died,  in  a 
tomb,  on  the  level,  or  a  little  below  the  level,  of  the  earth,  the  stone 
at  the  entrance  of  the  loculus  being  removed,  exposed  the  entire 
body  to  the  eye  of  the  observer.  There  are,  perhaps,  1,000  of  these 
rock-cut  tombs  around  Jerusalem. 

How  I  should  like  to  hear  the  agreeable,  tender,  and  elegant 
music  of  Beethoven's  oratorio  of  "  Mount  Olivet "  played  here  upon 
this  historical  summit,  instead  of  yonder  jingle  of  instruments 
on  the  steps  of  the  Governor's  serai  (palace). 

Among  the  most  pleasing  accounts  I  have  read  of  the  city,  from 
this  point  of  view,  I  reckon  that  in  Bro.  H.  B.  Tristam's  Land  of 
Israel,  where  he  describes  the  birds  of  Jerusalem.  Here  he  had  the 
field  all  to  himself,  the  rest  of  us,  in  the  contemplation  of  stones  and 
ruins,  forgetting  that  such  things  as  birds  exist  in  the  Holy  City  at 
all.  But  his  notes  under  this  head  are  full  and  charming.  In  the 
olive-trees,  he  says,  the  beautiful  little  palm  turtle-dove  dwells  (Tur- 
tur  Senegalensis],  and  remains  here  all  winter.  In  the  cypress-trees 
is  the  goldfinch  (Carduelis  elegans);  also  the  great  titmouse  (Parus 
major}.  In  the  corner  of  a  wall  I  marked  the  blue  thrush  (Petrocin- 
da  Cyanea} ;  and  running  along  the  pavement,  the  white  wagtail ;  and 
in  the  side  and  the  dome  of  Kubbet  es-Sakhrah,  the  kestrel  (Tin- 
nunculus  alaudarius),  and  the  little  owl  (Athene  meridionalis).  And 
much  more  to  the  same  effect. 

Studying  here  the  history  of  the  siege  and  assault  by  Titus,  I 
cannot  help  wondering  why  for  this  he  did  not  use  the  catapult.  It 
was  invented  450  years  before,  and  was  certainly  capable  of  throwing 


372 


MASONIC   MYTH. 


huge  stones  much  further  than  the  distance  from  where  we  are  stand- 
ing, into  the  heart  of  yonder  city. 

One  of  .the  most  remarkable  pieces  of  picture-writing  in  the  world 
is  that  given  in  the  cut  of  the  siege  of  Jerusalem  by  the  King  of 
Nineveh,  about  B.C.  710.  It  was  discovered  by  Layard,  and  is  now  in 
the  British  Museum.  In  it  we  see  the  olive-trees;  the  brook 
Kidron  ;  the  fortified  city;  Mount  Olivet  with  a  castle  on  the  summit, 

and  other  characters. 

Extending  our  vis- 
ion westward,  we 
have  the  deep  go^jge 
of  the  valley  of 
Jehoshaphat,  intro- 
duced (improperly) 
into  Blue  Lodge  ritu- 
als. Through  this 
valley  ran  the  brook 

SIEGE   OF  JERUSALEM.  KidrOll,     UOW      SUllk 

fifty  feet  under  loose  earth,  that  chokes  the  ancient  channel.  I  never 
could  pass  this  brook  Kidron  without  recalling  the  words  which 
Ezekiel  wrote  concerning  it.  He  makes  it  the  connecting  link 
between  Jerusalem  the  Holy  and  the  Dead  Sea  the  Impure.  In  chap- 
ter xlvii.  we  read : 

"  Then  said  he  unto  me,  These  waters  issue  out  toward  the  east 
country,  and  go  down  into  the  desert,  and  go  into  the  sea ;  which 
being  brought  forth  into  the  sea,  the  waters  shall  be  healed.  And  it 
shall  come  to  pass,  that  every  thing  that  liveth,  which  moveth, 
whithersoever  the  river  shall  come,  shall  Uve  ;  and  there  shall  be  a 
very  great  multitude  offish,  because  these  waters  shall  come  thither; 
for  they  shall  be  healed ;  and  everything  shall  live,  whither  the  river 
cometh."  The  two  existing  bridges  here  serve  at  least  to  keep  us  in 
mind  of  the  prophecy,  although  there  is  no  water  here  now  to  suggest 
them. 

There  is  an  elegant  myth  connected  with  the  literature  of  Masonry, 
to  the  effect  that,  upon  the  arrival  of  Hiram  Abif  at  Jerusalem, 
King  Solomon  conducted  him  to  a  point  near  the  junction  of  the 
mountains  now  termed  Olivet  and  Offence,  and  showed  him  the  range 
entitled  Moriah,  which  he  had  selected  as  the  site  of  his  projected 
tempi*.  On  one  occasion  I  sought  that  spot,  and  endeavored  to 
paint  the  scene  in  its  natural  colors.  Moriah  was  a  long,  narrow 


THE  ST.  STEPHEN  S  GATE. 


373 


ridge,  deeply  furrowed  by  ravines,  divided  primarily  into  three  peaks 
by  cross  valleys,  the  top  of  the  range  rising  nearly  400  feet  above 
the  bed  of  the  valley  of  Jehoshaphat  on  the  east,  and  that  of  Tyro- 
poeon  on  the  west.  Upon  that  most  illy-fitted  hill,  the  king  had 
ordained  the  construction  of  his  temple ;  the  top  to  be  cut  off,  the 
sides  to  be  raised  by  immense  walls,  nearly  200  feet  high,  and  the 
interstices  filled  in  with  stone.  Such  were  the  preliminary  steps  requi- 
site to  form  even  a  platform  for  the  temple.  In  point  of  fact,  all 
this  must  be  done  before  a  stone  of  the  building  itself  could  be  laid 
down. 

Our  story  goes  on  to  say  that  it  was  in  that  conference  that  Hiram 
initiated  King  Solomon  into  the  mysteries  of  Adonis,  as  practised  for 
so  many  centuries  in  Phoenicia,  and  thus  the  two  great  men  were 
drawn  together  by  fraternal  ties,  only  severed  by  death.  The  fate  of 
Adonis,  which  forms  the  esotery  of  that  system,  was  strangely  paral- 
leled, a' few  years  afterwards,  by  the  fate'of  Hiram  himself.  No  spot 
in  all  the  vicinity  of  Jerusalem  is  associated  with  matters  of  deeper 
Masonic  interest  than  this. 

And  next  we  will  take  notice  of  the  eastern  wall  of  Jerusalem, 
in  the  centre  of  which  is  St.  Stephen's  Gate,  or  Lady  Mary  Gate  (Bab 
es-Sitti  Miriam),  of  which  I  give  a  drawing 

X  early  all  the  wall  to 
the  left  (south)  of  this 
is  the  grand  substruc- 
ture of  the  Noble  Inclo- 
sure,  or  Mount  Moriah, 
marked  out  to  us  with 
distinctness  by  the  great 
dome  that  we  saw  from 
Mount  Scopus. 

Long  before  reaching 
this  city,  I  had  resolved, 
at  all  hazards,  to  place 
the  Masonic  mark  of 
the  Square  and  Compass 
conspicuously  upon 
some  one  of  the  huge 
ashlars  that  make  up  the  ST.  STEPHEN'S  GATE. 

wall  of  the  old  Temple  area  on  its  eastern  side.  The  task  was  by  no 
means  a  pleasant  one,  nor  altogether  safe. 


374  STORY   OF  THE   STONE. 

Across  the  valley  of  Jehoshaphat,  in  plain  view,  is  the  village  of 
Silwan  (Siloam),  whose  inhabitants  are  among  the  most  fanatical  peo- 
ple in  the  vicinity.  Close  by,  on  the  north,  is  a  large  Moslem  grave- 
yard, ofteii  crowded  with  Mohammedan  women,  who  would  scarcely 
permit  a  Christian  to  walk  so  near  their  cherished  tombs,  much  less 
commit  the  profanity  of  cutting  into  the  Temple-wall  with  a  chisel. 
Add  to  this,  one  of  the  principal  roads  around  the  city  runs  within 
thirty  steps  of  the  ashlar  I  had  selected  for  my  operations,  so  that  I 
was  liable  to  interruption  at  any  moment — and  the  reader  will  appre- 
ciate the  difficulties  of  the  task.  However,  I  was  not  easily  deterred ;. 
and  placing  an  assistant  in  the  road  below,  with  instructions  to  keep 
a  vigilant  lookout,  I  marked,  out  my  figure,  and  began.  Perhaps  the 
real  danger  of  this  attempt,  after  all,  lay  in  the  military  lookouts 
upon  the  works  one  hundred  feet  above  my  head.  Had  they  witnessed 
my  operations,  it  was  like  them  to  pitch  a  donick  or  two  over  the  wall, 
or  even  to  fire  their  pieces  down  upon  me  ;  and  this,  according  to  the 
usages  of  that  sanctuary,  would  have  been  justifiable  in  them.  But 
I  made  my  mark  deep  and  bold,  as  future  travellers  will  not  fail  to 
see.  It  is  cut  in  the  fifth  stone  of  the  second  tier  of  blocks,  counting 
from  the  southeast  corner  of  the  old  Temple-wall  to  the  north.  The 
block  is  a  large  one,  though  not  the  largest  in  that  part  of  the  struc- 
ture. 

To  a  fragment  of  this  vast  wall  which  I  brought  home  to  America, 
I  have  attached  this 

STOEY   OF   THE   STONE. 

"I  lay  darkly  and  silently  in  the  quarries  under  Mount  Moriah, 
when  the  first  builders  of  Jerusalem,  the  ancient  Jebusites,  gathered 
their  materials,  and  erected  their  walls  of  defence  upon  Mount  Zion. 
I  slumbered  there  at  the  lime  of  the  pious  meeting  between  Abraham 
and  Melchizedek;  and  when  the  patriarch  brought  his  son  Isaac 
here,  forty-two  years  later,  to  an  interrupted  sacrifice  upon  the  crown 
of  the  hill  of  Moriah  ;  and  when  Jacob  fled  north  ward  on  his  way  to 
a  divine  vision,  at  Bethel;  and  when  he  returned,  twenty  years  later, 
with  his  dying  Rachel ;  and  when  Joseph  passed  here,  ten  years  later, 
in  the  search  of  his  brethren.  I  heard  the  shock  of  the  onset  when 
Joshua  took  Jerusalem,  at  the  point  of  the  sword,  two  hundred  and 
seventy-eight  years  later,  and  burnt  it  with  fire;  and  the  shock  of  the 
onset  when  King  David,  at  the  head  of  all  Israel,  took  it  by  assault, 
four  hundred  and  four  years  later,  and  made  it  the  seat  of  his  kiug- 


THE  HYSSOP.  375 

doin.  I  was  taken,  thirty-seven  years  afterwards,  from  the  quarries, 
a  great  stone,  hewed  and  squared,  and  laid  up  here  in  the  east  wall, 
one  hundred  feet  from  its  base,  facing  the  rising  sun.  Here  I  have 
remained  for  two  thousand  eight  hundred  and  eighty  years.  I  have 
witnessed  great  events.  I  saw  the  dedication  of  the  Temple,  seven 
and  one-half  years  after  its  corner-stone  was  laid.  I  heard  the  shout  of 
the  assembled  millions  who  bowed  their  faces  to  the  pavement  and 
cried,  *  For  He  is  good ;  for  His  mercy  endureth  forever.'  The  gleam 
of  the  fire  from  heaven  and  the  shadow  of  the  miraculous  smoke 
alike  passed  over  my  polished  face.  I  witnessed  the  coming  of  the 
great  Chaldean,  four  hundred  and  sixteen  years  later ;  heard  his  battle 
cry ;  saw  the  irresistible  assault  of  his  armies ;  the  city  ruined,  and 
the  Temple  burned.  Fifty-two  years  afterwards,  I  saw  the  little  com- 
pany under  Zerubbabel  return  from  Babylon  and  begin  the  pious 
task  of  rebuilding.  Three  hundred  and  seventy-one  years  later,  I 
saw  the  greater  Maccabasus  perform  the  same  pious  undertaking. 
One  hundred  and  forty-seven  years  later,  I  saw  a  second  re-edification 
of  the  Temple  by  the  monster  Herod.  Fifty-one  years  later,  I  beheld 
the  triumphant  procession  of  the  Sou  of  Man,  as  he  passed  over  the 
great  bridge  connecting  Mount  Olivet  with  Mount  Moriah,  when  the 
people  of  Jerusalem  shouted  '  Hosanna  to  the  Son  of  David.'  A  few 
days  afterwards,  the  same  people,  fickle  and  untrustworthy,  shouted, 
'  Crucify  Him'  Then  I  saw  the  heavens  darkened  at  mid-day,  and 
felt  a  trembling  of  the  solid  earth,  such  as  Jerusalem  rarely  experi- 
ences. Thirty-seven  years  later,  I  witnessed  the  armies  of  Titui 
fortifying  the  hill  east  of  me,  and  drawing  their  lines  around  the 
doomed  city;  then  heard  those  sounds  of  assault,  resistance,  and  final 
despair,  with  which,  by  this  time,  I  had  become  so  familiar.  These 
savage  sights  and  sounds  were  often  renewed  afterwards.  In  A.D.  1099 
I  was  shaken  in  my  place  by  the  onset  of  the  crusaders,  who  put 
7,000  men  to  the  sword  upon  the  platform  just  above  me,  until  the 
blood  flowed  over  our  wall  like  the  drenchings  of  a  great  rain-storm. 
Again  and  again  I  was  an  eye-witness  of  such  scenes,  until  now,  two 
thousand  eight  hundred  and  eighty  years  from  my  first  establish- 
ment in  this  wall,  I  give  to  an  inquiring  Freemason  from  distant 
lands  my  strange  story  of  the  stone." 

As  an  appropriate  botanical  emblem  here,  I  note  the  plant  of  Solo- 
monic fame,  "  the  hyssop  that  springeth  out  of  the  wall,"  and  give  a 
cut  of  it.  I  have  a  specimen  of  it  to-day  (February  29,  1872),  fresh 
and  green,  which  I  plucked  nearly  four  years  ago  from  Hiram's  Tomb. 


876 


THOUGHTS   ON   OLIVET. 


All  intelligent  visitors  to  Jerusalem  have 
united  in  praising  the  scenery  from  Mount 
Olivet.  It  is  mild  and  gentle,  with  soft  varia- 
tions of  light  and  shade.  One  elegant  writer 
calls  the  view  "  a  solace  of  holy  reminiscences 
pure  and  native."  Raised  two  hundred  and 
ninety-five  feet  above  Mount  Moriah,  which  ia 
the  nearest  part  of  Jerusalem,  the  sketcher  sees 
the  city  as  a  continuous  hill,  standing  out  sin- 
gly from  the  surrounding  mountains.  Here 
David  stood,  while  contemplating  with  a  sol- 
dier's eye  the  strong  fortress  of  Jebus  on  the 
opposite  cliffs,  and  preparing  with  his  two  hun- 
dred and  eighty  thousand  men,  choice  warriors 
of  Israel,  to  storm  it.  (1  Chron.  xii.)  Shishak 
stood  here,  and  Nebuchadnezzar,  and  Titus,  and 
all  the  conquerors  of  Jerusalem ;  for  from 
this  point  the  defences  could  best  be  viewed, 
and  arrangements  made  for  the  attack.  From 
here,  perhaps,  Josephus  pointed  out  the  various 
localities  to  Titus,  who,  with  his  Tenth  Legion, 
made  this  his  principal  point  of  observation  dur- 
ing the  long  months  of  the  siege.  From  this 
commanding  spot,  all  the  imagery  of  the  Levit- 
ical  worship  was  best  seen  ;  and  here  the  cap- 
tain of  Nebuchadnezzar  studied  it  day  by  day 
during  the  eighteen  months  that  he  strove  to 
capture  Jerusalem.  Observers  also  stood  here 
when  the  man  born  blind  was  led  down  to  Si- 
loam  yonder,  and  came  back  seeing  (John  ix.  7) ;  and  when  the  im- 
potent man  took  up  his  bed  and  walked  from  the  margin  of  Bethesda 
yonder  (John  ii.  2) ;  and  when  the  chief  musician,  on  Neginoth,  with 
stringed  instruments  and  high-sounding  cymbals,  praised  God  accord- 
ing to  His  excellent  greatness  (Psalm  cl.),  on  yonder  platform  ;  and 
when  the  great  Antiochus,  swelling  with  anger,  vowed  proudly  "  that 
he  would  come  to  Jerusalem  and  make  it  a  common  burying-place  of 
the  Jews  "  (2  Mace.  ix.  4) ;  and  when  the  early  American  missionary, 
Pliny  Fisk,  entered  the  Damascus  Gate  yonder,  in  1823,  to  •'  go  about 
his  Master's  business  "  at  Jerusalem  ;  and  when  Saul,  "  breathing  out 
threatenings  and  slaughter  against  the  disciples  of  the  Lord  "  (Acts 


HYSSOP. 


VALLEY   OF  JEHOSHAPHAT.  377 

ix. ),  went  out  of  i/hat  same  gate  to  the  persecution,  and  came  back 
several  years  afterwards  the  humblest  of  the  followers  of  the  meek 
and  lowly  Jesus.  Observers  stood  here  when  the  Jews  "  stoned 
Stephen "  on  yonder  hillside,  "  calling  upon  God  and  saying,  Lord 
Jesus,  receive  my  spirit  "  (Acts  vii.  59) ;  and  when  the  great  pro- 
cession passed  westward  along  this  very  pathway  by  whose  side  I  am 
sitting — passed  over  garments  spread  in  the  way,  and  over  branches 
of  trees,  and  went  across  the  stupendous  bridge,  now  destroyed,  and 
through  the  portals  of  the  Golden  Gate,  yonder,  while  "  they  that 
went  before  and  they  that  followed  said,  Hosanna,  blessed  is  he  that 
cometh  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  "  (Mark  xi.) ;  and  when  Jesus  "  be- 
held the  city,"  probably  at  this  very  spot,  and  "  wept  over  it "  (Luke 
xix.  41),  just  as  he  had  wept  over  the  sorrows  of  the  disconsolate 
family  at  Bethany  but  a  few  days  before  (John  xi.) ;  finally,  on  that 
dark,  that  doleful  afternoon,  when  "  the  earth  did  quake  and  the 
rocks  rent,"  and  "  darkness  was  over  the  whole  land  until  the  iiinth 
hour,"  because  Christ,  on  yonder  ridge,  scarcely  a  mile  from  this  spot, 
had  given  up  the  ghost,  first  enduring  the  pangs  of  the  cross, — 
but  my  sentence  can  never  be  completed.  All  those  scenes,  and  a 
multitude  of  others,  embracing  incidents  in  the  life  of  every  Scrip- 
tural character  from  Abraham  to  Paul,  occurred  within  sight  of 
spectators  upon  this  memorable  slope  of  Olivet  where  I  sit. 


We  pass  now  down  the  valley  of  Jehoshaphat,  leaving  successively 
>n  our  left  the  old  Hebrew  buryiug-ground,the  Tombs  of  Absalom. 


d78 


BRINGING   TO   LIGHT. 


Zechariah,  etc.,  and  reach  first  the  Virgin's  Fount,  and  then  the  pool 
of  Siloam.     My  cut  shows  these  monuments  with  distinctness. 

A  vivid  fancy  has  drawn  a  parallel  between  this  "  bringing  to  light " 
of  the  blind  man  here  and  the  symbolic  representation  familiar  to 
every  Mason.  What  a  glorious  sunlight  kindled  up  his  long  sight- 
less eyeballs,  and  brought  the  beautiful  and  cheering  scenes  of  nature 
to  his  knowledge !  How  the  heart  of  Judas  must  have  clashed  with 
his  covetous  nature  every  step  of  the  way  along  this  gloomy  dale,  as 
he  went  to  the  palace  of  the  High-Priest  to  receive  the  wages  of  his 
treason  !  On  the  left  of  us  is  the  village  of  Siloam  (Silwan),  where 
the  people  live  in  the  dark,  damp  tombs.  My  cut  is  of  the  upper 
spring,  or  Virgin's  Fount. 


VIRGIN'S  FOUNT. 

We  cannot  fail  to  observe,  below  the  pool  of  Siloam,  the  extraor- 
dinary fertility  of  the  soil,  as  displayed  in   the  productions  of  the 


VALLEY   OP   SHAVEH. 


379 


gardens  here.  These  are  the  King's  Gardens  of  Solomon's  time.  This 
is  the  valley  of  Shaveh,  where  the  prince  Melchizedek  met  the  pa- 
triarch Abraham  reclining  as  these  lazy  natives  are  reclining  to-day, 
and  gave  him  bread  and  wine  in  the  name  of  the  Most  High  God 
(Genesis  xiv.  18).  My  cut,  taken  from  a  point  further  south,  at 
Aceldama  (the  Potter's  Field  of  Judas),  shows  us  this  extraordinary 
development,  always  apparent  in  this  country  when  there  is  water 
enough  for  irrigation ;  also  the  village  of  Siloam,  the  church  on  the 
Bummit  of  Olivet  on  the  right,  and  the  dome  of  Omar  on  the  left 
This  engraving  exhibits  the  valley  of  Jehoshaphat  in  its  best  fea- 
tures. 


VIEW    NORTH    FROM    ACELDAMA. 


380 


TOMB   OF   DAVID. 


Climbing  again  in  a  southwesterly  direction,  we  find  ourselves  on 
the  Hill  of  Evil  Counsel,  so  called,  honeycombed  beneath  with  ancient 
tombs.  The  heavy,  square  edifice  directly  before  us,  near  the  south- 
western corner  of  the  city,  outside,  is  the  Tomb  of  David,  in  which  is 
the  apartment  traditionally  styled  C&naculum  (supper-room),  in 
which  the  Lord's  Supper  was  instituted,  and  beneath  which,  with  far 
more  reason,  we  place  the  bodies  of  David  and  Solomon,  and  some 
fifteen  of  their  royal  successors.  Here  is  a  cut  of  the  edifice  so  famed. 


DAVID'S  TOMB.  MOUNT  siox. 

Between  us  and  the  tomb  are  the  various  Protestant  cemeteries, 
American,  English,  and  others.  Included  in  the  ten  thousand  trage- 
dies surrounding  this  city,  there  is  one  that  particularly  touches 
an  American  heart.  When  W.  M.  Thomson  came  here  in  1834,  to 
open  a  missionary  station,  he  left  his  wife  in  the  city,  and  went  back 
to  Joppa  for  his  furniture  and  clothing  deposited  there.  In  the  mean- 
time a  rebellion  broke  out,  and  for  several  months  he  was  unable  to 
return.  The  city,  in  this  time,  was  cannonaded,  decimated  by  cholera, 


TOWER   OF    DAVID. 


381 


and  terribly  shaken  by  earthquakes ;  so  that,  when  at  last  he  was  er.- 
abled  to  return,  his  first  view  of  Jerusalem  caused  horror  and  faint- 
ness  to  seize  him,  in  .the  apprehension  caused  by  seeing  his  house 
knocked  to  pieces  by  artillery.  His  wife  died  a  few  weeks  afterward 
of  the  fright  and  exposure,  and  the  afflicted  man  wrote,  "  The  Lord 
hath  put  out  the  light  in  my  dwelling,  laid  my  earthly  hopes  in  the 
dust,  and  rendered  my  dear  little  babe  motherless  in  a  strange  land.' 
That  child  is  now  Prof.  W.  H.  Thomson,  of  New  York. 

The  visitor  to  this  cemetery  should  also  look  up  the  grave  of  poor 
Costigan,  and,  before  going  down  to  the  Dead  Sea,  read  his  melan- 
choly history.  Stevens  (Travels,  II.  235)  records  it  with  much  feeling. 
Near  the  honored  grave  of  Mrs.  Thomson  lies  Dr.  Asa  Dodge,  a  zeal- 
ous American  missionary,  who  died  here  January  28,  1835. 

Passing  around  the  southwest  angle  of  the  city,  leaving  the  vast 
"  Lower  Pool  of  Gihon  "  on  the  left,  and  striking  out  westward  suf- 
ficiently far  to  secure  a  good  view  of  the  city  from  this  quarter,  our 
attention  is  first  attracted  to  the  massive  Tower  of  David  (so  called) 
by  the  Joppa  Gate.  I  place  two  cuts  in  juxtaposition. 


THE  DAVID  TOWER. 

Here,  at  the  Joppa  Gate,  the  Emperor  Hadrian,  about  A.D.  120,  set 
up  the  image  of  a  hog,  not  an  uncommon  emblem  on  the  Roman 
coins,  but  a  most  horrible  insult  to  the  nation  that  built  Jerusalem. 

This  completes  our  circuit  of  the  city,  comprising  a  ride  of  about 


382. 


THE   JOPPA   GATE. 


six  miles,  though  the  actual  circuit  of  the  walls  themselves  is  but 
4,326  yards,  or  two  and  a  half  miles.  It  is  a  curious  subject  of  con- 
templation, that,  in  some  far-distant  day,  a  tourist  from  some  far- 


THE  JOPPA  GATE;  OB  GATE  ON  THE  WEST  SIDE  OF  JERUSALEM. 

distant  land  may,  in  like  manner,  circumambulate  the  then  desolate 
city  of  New  York,  stopping  inquiringly  at  the  corner  of  Fulton- 
street  and  Broadway,  where  the  signs  of  old  buildings  have  quite 
disappeared,  and  wondering  how  far  in  this  direction,  from  the  ruined 
stone  piers  at  Castle  Garden,  the  once  magnificent  metropolis  ex- 
tended !  Like  Mount  Sion,  Manhattan  then  may  yield  to  the  exca- 
vator its  wealth  of  carved  marbles,  ancient  coins,  domestic  objects, 
and  human  bones. 

As  I  set  out  in  this  chapter  regretting  that  we  have  no  proper 
account  of  the  sieges  and  captures,  assaults  and  defences  of  Jerusa- 
lem, I  am  glad  to  add  that  a  history  of  Jerusalem  from  Herod  to  the 
present  time  will  be  published  this  year  (1872)  from  the  pens  of 
Walter  Besant  and  E.  H.  Palmer,  giving  special  attention  to  the 
period  1099  to  1187,  so  interesting  to  Knights  Templars. 

The  view  of  the  stupendous  ruins  of  Jerusalem  one  calm  Sabbath 
morning  called  to  my  mind  the  beautiful  Masonic  allegory  of  "  work- 
ing in  silence,"  founded  as  it  is  upon  the  following  passages  : 

"And  the  house,  when  it  was  in  building,  was  built  of  stone  made 


LABORERS   WITH   GOD. 


383 


ready  before  it  was  brought  thither ;  so  that  there  was  neither  ham- 
mer nor  axe,  nor  any  tool  of  iron  heard  in  the  house,  while  it  was  in 
building."  (1  Kings  vi.  7.)  This  suggests  one  of  the  grandest  pur- 
poses of  the  Masonic  institution,  viz.,  the  promotion  of  peace  and 
harmony.  Mr.  Beecher,  in  one  of  his  inimitable  prayers,  has  said,  to 
the  same  effect:  "Thy  work,  0  Lord!  in  the  structure  of  the  human 
soul,  and  thy  government  that  is  established  beyond  and  out  of  our 
sight,  are  wrought  out  here.  Here  thou  art  bringing  forth  the  stones 
for  thy  building;  here  is  the  sound  of  the  hammer  and  the  chisel; 
here  is  all  confusion,  and  here  are  all  waste  and  noisome  things ;  but 
here  is  but  the  ground  where  thou  art  shaping.  Yonder  is  where 
thou  art  building,  and  there  they  that  stand  around  thee  behold  the 
perfectness  of  all  thy  work,  which  thou  hast  had  in  hand  since  the 
beginning  of  the  world ! "  These  are  grand,  good  words,  and  will 
touch  a  chord  in  every  Masonic  heart ;  for  it  is  a  Masonic  precept, 
that  "  we  are  laborers  together  with  God ;  we  are  God's  husbandry 
we  are  God's  building."  That  great  man  who,  eighteen  centuries 
ago,  preached  along  these  hills,  teaching  men  everywhere  to  believe, 
repent,  and  be  saved,  was  proud  to  make  the  claim  :  "According  to 
the  grace  of  God,  which  is  given  unto  me,  as  a  wise  master-builder,  I 
have  laid  the  foundation."  (1  Cor.  iii.  10.) 


'•rrOLEMY   I.   SOTER.      STRUCK  AT  TTRB. 


MAP  OF  CANAAN, 

AND    THE    TWELVE    TRIBES. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

V 

JERUSALEM   IK   1868. 

HE  incident  of  my  sending  a  telegram,  in  1868,  from  Bey 
rout  to  a  friend  in  Jerusalem,  fitly  illustrates  the  changes 
that  haw  come  over  this  ancient  city  since  the  days  when, 
isolated  by  its  vast  precipices,  wretched  roads,  and  swarm- 
ing enemies,  the  crusaders  who  held  it  in  the  eleventh  cen- 
tury yearned  for  months  and  years  to  receive  news  from  their  dis- 
tant homes,  but  yearned  in  vain.    The  recent  setting-up  of  a  steam- 


REV.  H.  PETERMANN,  D.D.,    LL.D., 

Resident,  1868,  at  Jerusalem ;  a  Mason  of  40  years'  standing, 
eng'ne  in  Jerusalem  for  grinding  grain  is  another  illustration  in  the 


THE   PRUSSIAN    HOTEL. 

same  direction  ;  how  had  King  Solomon's  183,300  workmen  been 
diminished  to  the  number  of  10,000,  could  his  architects  have  em- 
ployed the  power  of  steam  instead  of  human  labor,  to  saw,  cut, 
remove,  and  lift  in  place  the  mighty  ashlars  now  visible  in  the  in- 
closing walls  of  Mount  Moriah.  The  population  is  at  present  about 
25,000,  of  whom  nearly  one  half  (10,000)  are  Jews.  The  city  has 
two  good  hotels,  and  various  boarding-houses,  in  one  of  which,  the 
Prussian  House,  under  the  patronage  of  the  Prussian  Knights  of 
St.  John,  I  made  my  abode.  Missionaries  of  almost  every  Christian 
nation  except  America,  are  engaged  here  in  the*  education  and  con- 
version of  the  natives.  Some  of  their  establishments,  such  as  tnc 
English  Episcopal,  the  Roman  Catholic,  the  Armenian,  and  the 
Greek  churches,  are  imposing  in  magnitude.  The  American  Vice-Con- 
sul at  Jerusalem,  Mr.  L.  M.  Johnson  (in  1872  a  citizen  of  New  Haven, 
Connecticut),  is  a  gentleman  of  fine  qualifications,  and  treated  me 
with  much  courtesy  and  attention.  The  present  incumbent  of  the 
office  is  Hon.  R.  Beardsley,  a  very  ardent  Mason,  formerly  of  Elkhart, 
Indiana.  At  the  Prussian  House,  where  I  boarded,  all  are  wel- 
come, up  to  the  limits  of  the  house;  and  only  those  who  are  able  are 
expected  to  pay.  My  bill  was  only  five  francs  ($1)  per  day,  while 
the  fare  is  abundant  and  good.  The  place  is  snug  and  comfortable  ; 
well  described  by  a  gentleman  who  was  here  some  years  since  as  "  a 
singularly  constructed  concern.  A  high  wall  or  foundation  looks  on 
the  street,  and  on  that  the  house  is  built.  You  climb  from  the  street 
by  a  narrow  wooden  stairway,  and  enter  a  court  about  forty  feet 
square,  round  which  the  rooms  are  huddled.  From  this  court  rises 
a  second  stairway,  which  leads  to  a  row  of  rooms ;  another  stairway 
takes  you  to  another  batch  of  chambers,  and  so  you  reach  the  house- 
top, flat,  like  all  houses  in  this  country."  This  affords,  at  a  coup  tfc&il, 
a  glimpse  of  Scopus,  Olivet,  the  village  of  Siloam,  Mosque  of  Omar, 
Sion,  and  many  noted  points  besides.  In  the  furniture  of  my  boarding- 
house,  scrupulously  clean  as  it  was,  evidences  could  be  seen  of  what 
I  had  observed  more  plainly  in  the  English  Hotel  at  Joppa,  viz.,  the 
ravages  of  the  moth  (Tinea  tapetzella),  referred  to  in  Bible  passages, 
and  which  is  very  destructive  in  this  climate.  The  general  idea  of 
my  house-top,  with  its  battlements,  etc.,  will  be  gathered  from  the  cut 
on  the  next  page. 

The  streets  of  Jerusalem,  like  those  of  Oriental  cities,  towns,  anc 
villages  generally,  are  extremely  narrow.  There  are  two  reasons  for 
i  his :  first,  that  the  population  may  be  crowded,  for  defensive  pur 


HASTINESS   OF  THE   STREET?.  387 

poses,  into  as  little  space  as  possible — most  towns  being  upon  hill- 
lops,  where  space  is  restricted;  second,  because  the  people  believe  they 
can  keep  cooler  in  this  way.  In  the  hot  season,  they  spread  mattings 


VIEW   OF  A   HOUSETOP. 

Across  from  roof  to  roof,  which  throw  the  streets  into  a  dense  shade 
that  certainly  is  cooler  than  our  broad  streets  exposed  to  the  full 
blaze  of  the  sun.  The  streets  of  Jerusalem  likewise  are  filthy.  The 
reader  will  hardly  conceive  that  so  much  carrion,  so  much  manure, 
so  much  old  vegetables,  and  the  debris  of  humanity,  can  be  packed 
into  one  alley  six  to  ten  feet  wide.  But  they  do  it,  and  do  it  neatly. 
In  regard  to  this  nastiness,  I  am  reminded  that  in  the  eighth  century, 
annually,  on  the  15th  September,  immense  processions  used  to  tra- 
verse Jerusalem,  and  render  them  extremely  offensive  with  dung;  but 
they  had  no  sooner  left  the  city  than  heavy  rains  would  fall,  com- 
pletely purifying  it.  It  is  not  so  now.  One  could  wish  that  the 
builder  of  the  Cloaca  Maxima  (B.  c.  588)  at  Rome  had  an  imita- 
tor in  Jerusalem,  to  drain  oflf  the  foul  matters  which  have  no  outlet 
but  the  streets  and  a  few  shallow  and  restricted  sewers.  Is  the  view 
from  these  contracted  streets  an  agreeable  one?  Not  much.  This 
passage  from  somebody's  note-book  describes  it :  "  Bare  stone  walls ; 
priscn-like  houses;  very  few  latticed  windows;  the  whole  view 


388  SILLY   EXPECTATIONS. 

wretchedly  unsatisfactory  to  a  civilized  eye,"  The  proud  and  stately 
Moslem,  fingering  his  beads  in  abstracted  mood,  threads  the  bazaai 
with  step  as  proud  and  stately  as  a  Pharisee:  and  yet,  if  you  look 
at  his  feet,  you  see  a  combination  of  every  sort  of  excrement;  and  if 
you  open  your  nostrils,  you  gather  in,  from  the  same,  a  variety  of 
effluvias  to  which  the  celebrated  "  three-and-forty  stinks  of  Cologne" 
were  nothing.  Verbum  sat  sap. 

In  coming  to  Jerusalem  I  had  certain  well-defined  objects  of 
research,  and  confined  myself  mainly  to  them.  This  is  prudent. 
To  come  simply  "  to  see  what  is  to  be  seen,"  as  a  traveller  told  me 
he  did,  is  to  see  nothing  coolly  and  deliberately.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  visitor  may  waste  his  days  seeking  unattainable  objects.  A  stu- 
dent once  showed  me  a  list  of  the  things  he  intended  to  look  up, 
should  he  ever  visit  Jerusalem.  Among  them  were  the  mark  of  the 
Ass's  feet  that  bore  Jesus  from  Bethany  over  Mount  Olivet,  and  into 
the  Temple  (Matthew  xxi.)  Sir  John  Maundeville  said  they  were 
here  when  he  came,  A.D.  1322,  visible  at  three  places  on  the  steps  of 
the  Golden  Gate,  which  are  of  very  hard  stone.  Also  the  pillar  that 
Absalom  in  his  lifetime  had  reared  up  in  the  king's  dale,  as  in 
y  Samuel  xviii.  He  had  been  told  that  everybody  throws  stones 
at  it,  as  a  mark  of  scorn  at  that  cruel  son,  and  he  was  determined 
to  do  it  too.  Likewise  the  pool  of  Siloatn.  The  tradition  is  that 
the  water  of  it  will  heal  sore  and  inflamed  eyes.  He  had  resolved 
to  carry  a  bottleful  of  it  home  and  experiment  upon  it.  Also  a 
palm-tree  standing  on  the  side  of  Mount  Olivet,  from  which  the 
branches  were  taken  to  honor  Christ.  He  assured  me  he  would 
gather  some  of  the  leaves.  (Matt,  xxi.)  And,  finally,  the  stone  col 
umn  to  which. our  Lord  was  bound  when  he  was  scourged.  (Matt. 
xxvii.  26.)  Long  afterwards,  the  marks  of  blood  were  to  be  seen  on  it, 
if  the  monks  tell  the  truth,  and  I'm  sure  they  don't.  I  need  not  say 
that  the  traveller  seeking  for  such  things  only  wastes  his  time. 

In  reading  accounts  of  such  a  monument  of  antiquity  as  Jeru- 
salem, we  want  to  see  it  just  as  it  is,  in  its  every-day,  working  dress. 
We  would  behold  its  dazzle  and  its  dirt ;  its  numerous  classes  of 
inhabitants  grouped  and  herded  together  within  the  walls;  the  man- 
ners and  customs  of  its  motley  populace ;  the  character  of  the  priest 
and  monks ;  the  remains  of  ancient  civilization,  and  the  prospect 
and  possibilities  of  improvement.     Such  was  my  aim. 

To  get  rid  of  a  subject  which  is  in  everybody's  mind,  I  commence 
with  a  sketch  of  the  so-called  Holy  Sepulchre. 


THE   HOLY   SEPULCHRE. 


389 


In  my  observations  on  this  subject,  I  but  express  the  feeling  of  all 
Protestants  of  my  acquaintance  who  have  weighed  the  arguments  by 


CHURCH    OF   THE   HOLY   SEPULCHRE. 

which  Papal  and  Greek  writers  endeavor  to  palm  this  place  upon 
the  Christian  world  as  the  veritable  Calvary  and  Cemetery  of  Christ. 
For  my  part,  I  find  no  passage  that  so  well  expresses  my  views  of 
these  false  traditions  and  unholy  mummeries  as  one  written  by  Brother 
Rev.  Pliny  Fisk,  the  missionary,  who  visited  here  in  1823,  the  same 
referred  to  in  Chapter  Thirteenth.  After  seeing  the  poor  theatricals 
made  up  hereof  the  crucifixion  scene,  he  wrote :  "  I  felt  as  though 
Jerusalem  were  a  place  accursed  of  God,  and  given  over  to  iniquity 
and  sin.  The  Jews  hate  the  name  of  Christ,  and  gnash  their  teeth 
when  it  is  spoken ;  the  Turks  exalt  their  false  prophet  above  Christ's 
most  glorious  name,  and  are  distinguished  for  their  hypocrisy,  tyranny, 
and  deception ;  the  Greeks  and  Armenians  profane  the  Temple  of 
the  Lord,  having  little  of  the  essential  nature  of  Christianity." 


390  OFFENSIVE   SUPERSTITIONS. 

Passing  along  by  the  so-called  Holy  Sepulchre,  one  morning,  1 
looked  in  for  a  few  minutes  to  witness  some  of  its  processions.  The 
workmen  had  just  completed  the  new  dome,  and  were  taking  down 
the  timbers.  I  had  read  all  that  can  be  said  for  and  against  accept- 
ing this  place  as  the  locality  of  our  Saviour's  death  and  burial,  and 
would  not  allow  the  gorgeousness  of  the  scene  to  influence  my  mind. 
I  believe  it  is  all  a.  fiction,  got  up  by  tradition-forgers  for  gain.  The 
whole  structure,  every  stone,  arch,  pillar,  altar,  statue,  image,  pic- 
ture, and  lamp,  is  &  falsehood,  a  gorgeous  imposture,  an  ecclesiastical 
hoax.  The  more  the  local  traditions  of  Jerusalem  are  examined,  the 
more  I  distrust  them.  Old  writers  tell  us  nothing  else ;  modern 
writers  must  be  fanatics  if  they  venture  to  say  anything  about  them 
except  to  deride  them.  They  coin  legends  and  frame  an  ecclesiastical 
topography  without  history  or  research.  The  business  of  travellers 
now  is  to  collect  facts  one  by  one  that  will  illustrate  God's  history, 
and  these  must  explode  the  legends. 

But  even  though  this  building  should  contain  all  the  relics  it  claims, 
and  ten  thousand  more,  this  would  not  countenance  in  the  slightest  de- 
gree the  abominable  idolatries  practised  here.  There  is  no  idolatry  on 
earth  more  offensive;  no  more  unseemly  and  indecent  behavior 
practised  in  any  heathen  temple,  than  here,  where  the  hopes  and 
affections  of  the  Eastern  Church  tend;  where  tens  and  hundreds  of 
thousands  come  up  to  obtain  pardon  for  their  sins,  and  lull  at  the 
cross  or  the  tomb  their  guilty  consciences  to  sleep,  never  to  be 
awakened  until  it  is  too  late.  The  Holy  Sepulchre  is  the  Mecca  of 
the  corrupt  Christianity  of  the  East  From  two  minarets  close  byr 
the  cry  of  "  God  is  God ;  Mohammed  is  the  prophet  of  God,"  floats 
over  this  broad  roof,  and  announces  to  the  four  winds  of  heaven  that 
the  Moslem  dominates  the  cradle  of  the  Christian  faith.  In  this 
building,  by  a  monstrous  stretch  of  faith,  to  which  my  boyhood's 
belief  in  Gulliver's  Travels  was  mathematical  accuracy,  they  have 
crowded  seventy  distinct "  sacred  localities"  undergone  roof,  and  pro- 
vided seventeen  semi  and  demisemi  sects  of  Christians  to  swear 
to  their  identity.  The  New  Jersey  brother  who  is  said  to  believe  in 
the  "legends"  of  the  Scotch  Rite,  is  Solomon  himself  compared 
with  this.  The  Wisconsin  man  who  indorses  the  Rite  of  Memphis, 
is  Sir  Isaac  Newton  personified  compared  with  these.  And  after  all, 
the  building  can  scarcely  be  called  a  church,  being  more  like  a  large 
depot-building,  covering  twoscore  offices.  Worthier  than  this,  and 
really  a  larger  church,  because  a  single  edifice,  is  the  Armenian  Church 


BENEATH   TH£    GREEN   SPRIGS. 


391 


of  St.  James,  on  Mt.  Sion.  This,  too,  is  unequalled  in  sacred  vest- 
ments and  rich  decorations.  Amongst  its  curiosities  is  the  chair 
that  St.  James  used  to  sit  on.  I  forgot  to  ask  for  this,  and  cannot 
describe  the  pattern  to  my  chair-making  correspondents.  The  num- 
ber of  ostrich -eggs  hanging  from  the  roof  of  this  church,  however, 
suggests  the  prolific  lays  of  that  stately  bird.  The  cry  of  an  old 
pilgrim  visiting  the  Holy  Sepulchre,  was,  "  Oh,  who  can  behold  with- 
out sorrow,  without  indignation,  the  enemies  of  Christ  acting  as  the 
lords  of  his  sepulchre  1 " 

How  analogous  is  this  fine  character  to  our  memories  of  him  who, 
not  far  from  this  same  spot,  was  found 

"  Buried  beneath  the  green  sprigs, 

Sleeping  under  the  sod." 

I  thought  of  this  when  I  found  a  large  acacia-tree  growing  in  an 
Englishman's  garden,  a  short  distance  south  of  this  spot. 
I  give  four  cuts  of  the  ancient  seals  of  Jerusalem. 

Having  now  said  all  that  I  have 
space  for  concerning  this  "  thesaurus 
of  lies,"  the  Holy  Sepulchre,  I  go  on 
to  record  such  thoughts  as  are  natu- 
rally suggested  by  a  walk  through 
Jerusalem. 

The  tenements  seem  to  be  sinking 
into  the  earth.  One  story  seems 
already  sunk,  and  the  others  are  so 
rapidly  following,  that  in  another  gen- 
eration the  observer  can  lean  from  the 
street  on  to  the  flat  roof. 

The  Jews  here,  although  living  in 
idleness  and  poverty,  two  things  ab- 
norrent  to  their  nature,  emulate  the 
blessing  pronounced  in  Nehemiah  xi. 
2,  "  upon  all  the  men  that  willingly 
offered  themselves  to  dwell  at  Jerusa- 
lem." For  they  came  to  Jerusalem 
strictly  for  religious  purposes,  that 
living,  they  may  pave  the  way  for 
the  future  return  of  their  nation  to 
these  holy  hills,  and  dying,  they  may 
he  buried  in  that  ancient  cemetery 
across  Jehoshaphat,  where  the  slope 


•IAL  OF  THK  KINO  OT  JERUSALEM. 

Anorlnm  1. 1162-1137. 


f?(  SPIT  ALTS  JERUSALEM. 

Kiiiirhtsof  St.  .Tohn. 


HEBREW    EPITAPHS. 


TURRIB  DAVID. 

Baldwin  IV.  1174-1185  A.D 


HOLT  8EPULCHBZ,    1150. 


of  Olivet  is  already  paved  with  their 
tombstones.  How  affectingly  those 
memorial  stones  speak  of  the  sleepers 
beneath,  is  seen  in  the  two  following 
epitaphs  (translated  from  the  He- 
brew) from  that  place.  There  is  a 
peculiar  accent  of  touching  grace  in 
them ;  a  humility ;  a  certain  hope  of 
universal  kindness;  a  sense  of  the 
happiness  of  reposing  with  the  just ; 
purity  of  morals  and  sweetness  of 
family  life;  a  mild  acceptation  of 
death,  considered  as  repose,  which 
have  not  had  the  attention  of  travel- 
lers they  deserve.  These  two  are  the 
epitaphs  of  a  lady  and  her  husband : 

EPITAPH   OP   A   WOMAN". 

"  Great  in  degree,  and  glorious ;  the  heart  of  her  husband  trusted 
safely  in  her ;  praised  as  a  woman  that  feareth  the  Lord.  She  was 
the  king's  daughter,  all  glorious  within,  who  rose  above  all  elevation, 
and  was  perfect  in  beauty,  glory,  and  righteousness.  She  opened  her 
mouth  with  wisdom,  and  in  her  tongue  was  the  law  of  kindness ;  a 
stem  of  high  descent  and  elevation.  Was  she  not  the  Rabbiness 
(Mrs.  Rabbi),  the  pleasant  roe,  and  the  widow  of  our  master  and 
teacher,  the  holy  Rabbi,  the  holy,  pious  Chaim,  the  son  of  Ater,  of 
blessed  memory  ?  She  was  daughter  of  the  mighty  and  wise,  the  high 
prince,  our  honored  teacher,  Rabbi  Moses,  the  son  of  Ater,  of  blessed 
memory." 

EPITAPH  OF  A   MAN. 

"Here  is  a  head  of  gold.  Was  he  not  beloved  of  the  Almighty? 
A  precious  stone ;  to  discourse  of  him,  is  easy.  The  Almighty  meant 
it  for  good  when  he  enlightened  him  from  his  glory,  as  they  lighten 
the  seven  lamps ;  his  shaft,  and  his  branch,  it  kindled  his  people. 
And  he  called  him  by  the  name  Hephzibah.  He  was  a  bringer  to 
light  of  all  that  is  kind ;  he  was  glory,  he  was  brightness.  Was  he 
not  the  wonderful  and  honored  Rabbi,  the  perfect  theologian  (caba- 
list)  of  the  Almighty,  the  holy,  the  pious,  our  honored  teacher  and 
Lord  Rabbi,  Chaim,  son  of  Ater?  He  grew  old,  seeking  in  the  Upper 
Geshibah  (place  of  study) ;  on  the  fifteenth  day  of  the  month  of  Tha- 


CAT-AND-DOG   NEIGHBORS.  $93 

muz,  in  the  year  5550  (i.e.,  the  year  A.  D.  1790),  gaining  the  splendor 
of  the  Shecinah.     He  is  the  author  of  the  book  *  The  Lord  the  King 
(Hammelech  Hashene),  and  the  book  <  Taar '  (Form),  and  the  book 
'  Or  Ha-haiiom '  (Light  of  the  Living),  and  the  book  '  Rishon  le  Zion ' 
(Is.  xli.  27),  (First  to  Zion)." 

So  great  is  the  change  in  favor  of  the  modern  Jews,  that,  accord- 
ing to  the  New  York  Independent  of  June  1, 1871,  the  Sultan  is 
inducing  Jews  to  immigrate  into  Palestine,  offering  to  sell  them  even 
the  Mosque  of  Omar  (but  this  is  incredible).  The  same  authority 
states  that  some  of  the  hills  around  Jerusalem  are  already  Jewish 
property. 

The  Armenians  here  are  very  strong  in  numbers,  and  wealthy. 
They  have  an  immensely  large  convent  (an  enormous  edifice)  in  the 
cool  and  quiet  street  that  runs  southward  on  Mount  Sion,  and  I 
greatly  enjoyed  my  visit  to  their  library  and  printing-press.  I  found 
the  manager  of  the  press  a  noble  specimen  of  an  Armenian  gentle- 
man, dressed  in  fur-robes,  black  hair  and  eyes,  intelligent  and  affable. 
The  librarian  had  an  olive  complexion,  a  face  solid  as  marble,  a  calm, 
intelligent  eye,  and  looked,  as  old  Dr.  Caswell  used  to,  as  if  he  knew 
what  was  inside  of  his  books.  My  guide,  Mr.  Serapion  Murad,  is  a 
fine  young  Syrian  of  striking  appearance,  set  off  by  an  elegant  native 
dress.  I  had  considerable  intercourse  with  him  both  in  Joppa  and 
Jerusalem.  The  Armenian  Patriarch  is  a  gentleman  of  polished 
manners  and  sensible  speech,  quite  well  posted  in  American  history 
and  manners. 

The  spirit  that  moves  these  Latins,  Armenians,  and  Greeks  in 
their  dealings  with  each  other  is  quite  Celtic,  and  of  the  Donnybrook 
Fair  type.  One  side  is  perpetually  dropping  "  the  tail  of  me  coat "  on 
the  ground,  and  the  other  side  delights  te  tread  on  it.  Once  a  year 
the  Pope  of  Rome  officially  excommunicates  the  Greek  Patriarch  of 
Jerusalem  for  some  of  his  shindies ;  and  in  one  of  the  churches  in 
Rome  a  nail  is  driven  into  the  ground  with  a  hammer,  as  a  mark  of 
malediction.  And  still  the  Patriarch  eats  his  allowance,  and  still  it 
does  him  good.  He  is  the  handsomest  man  that  I  know  of,  and  one 
of  the  best-tempered ;  and  I  can't  help  thinking,  if  Pius  X.  (or  is  it 
XX.?)  had  been  with  me  the  morning  I  called  on  him,  and  taken  a 
spoonful  of  those  preserves  and  a  cup  of  that  coffee,  and  shared  in 
that  genial  chat,  he  would  put  his  tenpennies  hereafter  to  a  better 
purpose.  But  what's  the  use  of  talking  in  that  way  ? 


INTERIOR   JERUSALEM    HOUSE. 


NAZEEP    PASHA. 


The  chapel  near  "  Ecce  Homo "  Arch  (as  it  is  most  improperly 
styled)  is  full  of  gaudy  and  ridiculous  paintings  and  ornaments, 
as  suggestive  of  devotion  to  an 
educated  Christian's  mind  as  the 
Hindoo  idol  that  adorns  my  par- 
lor at  La  Grange,  Kentucky,  is  to 
an  educated  believer  in  Confucius ; 
and  this  is  the  general  impression 
made  on  a  Protestant's  mind  in 
visiting  these  Oriental  churches. 
They  show  the  skull  of  one  of 
their  old  monks,  and  boast  that, 
although  he  lived  here  twenty 
years,  he  never  visited  the  Dead 
Sea.  I  am  told  the  skull  is  a  very 
thick  one,  and  readily  believe  it.  It 
is  close  by  the  traditional  spot  at  which  the  Wandering  Jew  mocked 
Jesus,  and  received  the  sentence  that  drove  him  forth  upon  a  cease- 
less pilgrimage,  and  gave  us  such  entertaining  books  as  Salathiel,  Le 
Jiiif  Errant,  etc.  Close  by  this  is  a  stone  trough,  out  of  which, 
they  say,  the  beggar  Lazarus  took  his  stinted  rations.  I  asked  one 
of  the  monks  if  he  knew  that  Josephus  was  born  here  A.D.  37  ?  He 
replied  that  he  had  never  heard  of  Josephus  before.  I  believe  him. 

I  found  the  Governor  of  Jerusalem,  Nazeef  Pasha,  to  be  a  short, 
stout  man,  handsomely  dressed,  a  square-built,  sailor-looking  fellow. 
He  was  not  over-courteous  to  me,  not  being  a  Freemason.  In  fact, 
he  has  the  reputation  of  being  an  anti-Mason.  They  call  him  a 
religious  fanatic,  one  who  goes  through  his  five  series  of  prayers  daily, 
and  keeps  all  the  feasts  and  fasts  of  the  Mohammedan  Church  punc- 
tually, and  hates  Christians  worse  than  anything  else  except  Jews. 
One  good  thing  stands  to  his  credit,  although  he  has  been  removed 
from  the  government  since  I  was  there ;  that  is,  he  constructed  the 
turnpike  from  Joppa  to  Jerusalem,  to  the  delectation  of  all  modern 
tourists.  As  to  his  ear  for  music,  however,  I  cannot  say  so  much,  if 
the  noises  made  by  the  brass  band  on  his  doorsteps,  every  evening 
about  sunset,  is  done  by  his  order. 

The  location  of  Jerusalem  relatively  to  other  places  is  thus  tabu- 
lated : 

Latitude,  31°  46'  north. 

Longitude,  35°  18'  east  of  Greenwich. 


HEIGHTS   AND   DISTANCES.  394 

From  Joppa,  35  miles. 

"  the  Jordan,  18  miles. 

"  Hebron,  19  miles. 

"  Bethel,  13  miles. 

"  Bethlehem,  5  miles. 

"  Samaria,  36  miles. 

"  Jericho,  13  miles. 

"  Nazareth,  45  miles. 

"  Acre,  75  miles. 

"  Baalbec,  165  miles. 

"  Capernaum,  82  miles. 

"  Damascus,  155  miles. 

"  Gaza,  48  miles. 

"  Palmyra,  160  miles. 

"  Tyre,  110  miles. 

"  Sidon,  132  miles. 

"  Beyrout,  157  miles. 

TABLE   OF   RELATIVE   HEIGHTS. 

I  give  two  classes  of  heights;  the  first  from  the  sea-level,  the 
second  from  the  well  En-rogel  (Beer  Eyub),  at  the  outlet  of  the  vat 
ley  of  Jehoshaphat. 

Russian  Convent  .    'V      .        .        .  2,610  614 

Mount  Olivet.        .        ..  fi'.  '     .        .  2,724  728 

Mosque  of  Omar  .        .      '  .'       .        .  2,429  433 

David's  Tomb         .        .        .    ;' .  '    V  2,537  441 

Pool  of  Siloam  .  .        .    '".-'."     .  2,114  118 

Bridge  over  Kedron       .        .        .       V  2,281  285 

CIRCUIT  OP  THE  CITY, 

commencing  at  the  northwest  corner. 

To  the  Joppa  Gate        ....  300  steps. 

"       southwest  corner  ....  468  "  * 

"       SionGate 195  « 

"       bend  in  south  wall        .        .        .295  « 

Mograbbin  Gate        .        .        .  244  « 

rt       southeast  corner  ....  415  " 

"       Golden  Gate      .        .        .        .  353  « 

«       St  Stephen's  Gate         .        .    "    .  230  « 


39tf  TOPOGRAPHY   OF   JERUSALEM. 

To  the  northeast  corner        .        .        .  360  steps. 

«       Herod's  Gate         .        .        .        .  359    « 

"       the  bend 250     " 

"       Damascus  Gate     .        .        .        .  150    " 

"       northwest  corner       .        .        .  660    " 


Total    ....         4,279  steps,  about  2|  miles. 

TOPOGRAPHY  OF  JERUSALEM. 

So  many  works  have  been  issued  on  this  subject  within  ten  yeara 
that  almost  every  reader  has  the  information  at  hand,  and  I  will  not 
repeat  at  much  length  merely  second-hand  knowledge. 

Jerusalem  is  a  mountain-city.  It  was  pre-eminently  so  to  the  Jew  ; 
for,  with  the  exception  of  Samaria  and  Hebron,  the  other  great  cities 
within  his  ken,  those  of  Egypt  and  Mesopotamia,  Damascus,  Tyre, 
Gaza,  Jezreel,  Jericho,  were  emphatically  cities  of  the  plain.  The 
Bible  teems  with  allusions  to  this  local  peculiarity  of  its  site  as  a 
mountain-city.  The  plateau  on  which  the  city  stands  is  of  tertiary 
limestone;  the  strata  nearly  horizontal,  the  landscape  showing 
generally  a  succession  of  plateaux  and  flat-topped  hills,  broken  here 
and  there  by  deep  narrow  gullies. 

At  the  point  where  the  city  stands,  a  tongue  of  land  is  inclosed 
between  two  of  these  ravines,  and  on  this  the  modern,  like  the  ancient, 
city,  is  built.  The  easternmost  of  these  ravines,  the  valley  of  Jehosh- 
aphat  or  of  the  Kedron,  has  a  course  nearly  north  and  south ;  the 
westernmost,  the  valley  of  Hinnom,  after  running  a  short  distance  to 
the  southward,  makes  a  bold  sweep  to  the  east,  and,  forming  the 
southern  limit  to  the  tongue  of  land  above  mentioned,  joins  the  val- 
ley of  Kedron,  not  far  from  the  Beer  Eyub,  or  Well  of  Joab.  Both 
ravines  commence  as  a  mere  depression  of  the  ground,  but  their 
floors  sink  rapidly,  and  their  sides,  encumbered  as  they  are  now  with 
the  accumulated  debris  of  centuries,  and  the  ruins  of  buildings 
thrown  down  by  successive  invaders  or  domestic  factions,  are  still 
Ikeep  and  difficult  of  access.  In  ancient  times  the  bare  rock  must 
have  shown  itself  in  many  places,  and  the  natural  difficulties  of  the 
ground  were  artificially  increased  in  ancient  times  by  the  scarping 
of  the  rock-surface.  Hence,  we  find  Jerusalem  to  have  been  at  all 
times,  before  the  invention  of  gunpowder,  looked  upon  as  a  fortress 
of  great  strength.  On  three  sides,  the  east,  the  south,  and  the  west, 
the  encircling  ravines  formed  an  impregnable  obstacle  to  an  assailant ; 


ZION   AND   MORIAH.  S9't 

the  attack,  therefore,  could  only  be  directed  against  the  northern  face 
of  the  city,  where,  as  we  are  informed  by  Josephus,  the  absence  of 
natural  defences  was,  at  the  time  of  the  famous  siege  by  Titus,  sup- 
plied by  three  distinct  lines  of  wall.  To  determine  the  actual  course 
of  these  walls  is,  notwithstanding  the  detailed  description  of  them  in 
Josephus.  one  of  the  most  difficult  problems  before  us. 

Besides  these  two  principal  ravines,  a  third  ravine  of  less  import- 
ance splits  the  tongue  of  land  into  two  unequal  portions.  This  is 
the  Tyropoeon  valley,  the  valley  of  cheesemakers,  or,  as  some  would 
have  it,  the  Tyrian  merchants.  A  marked  depression  of  the 
ground  runs  from  north  to  south  through  the  midst  of  the  modern 
city,  from  the  Damascus  gate  to  a  point  in  the  Kedron  valley,  some- 
what north  of  its  junction  with  the  valley  of  Hinnom,  forming  in 
its  course  the  boundary  between  the  Mohammedan,  and  the  Christian 
and  Jewish  quarters  of  the  modern  city.  At  one  part  of  its  course 
it  forms  the  western  boundary  of  Mount  Moriah.  This  depression 
has  generally  been  identified  in  its  whole  course  with  the  Tyropoeon 
valley  of  Josephus,  and  all  are  agreed  in  identifying  the  lower  portion, 
which  runs  under  the  west  wall  of  the  Haram,  and  thence  to  the  Ked- 
ron, with  the  Tyropoeon.  In  ancient  times  this  valley  was  much  deeper 
tfian  at  present,  and  its  ancient  course  was  to  the  eastward  of  its 
present  course.  It  is  filled  up  with  debris  thirty  feet,  fifty  feet,  and 
even  eighty-five  feet  in  depth. 

The  city  being  thus  split  in  the  midst  into  two  ridges  by  this  val- 
ley, it  may  be  observed,  by  a  reference  to  the  map  of  Jerusalem,  that 
the  western  ridge  is  the  most  elevated  and  most  important.  Mosv 
authorities  are  agreed  in  placing  on  some  portion  of  this  ridge  th< 
original  city  of  Jebus,  captured  by  King  David,  and  the  Upper  City  of 
Josephus.  All  again  are  agreed  in  fixing  Ophel  on  the  end  of  the 
tongue  of  land  called  Moriah,  and  in  making  the  site  of  the  Temples 
of  Solomon,  Zerubbabel,  and  Herod,  and  of  the  castle  of  Antonia, 
either  coincide  with  or  occupy  some  portion  of  the  Haram  itself. 

But  here  all  agreement  may  be  said  to  stop.  There  are  differences 
of  opinion  whether  we  should  fix  the  Mount  Zion  of  the  Bible  and 
the  Mount  Zion  of  the  writers  of  Christian  times  on  the  same  or  on 
opposite  hills  ;  whether  the  name  is  to  be  identified  with  the  eastern 
or  the  western  ridge.  The  exact  position  of  the  Temple  is  matter  of 
controversy  ;  the  site  of  the  Acra  of  Josephus,  and  the  Acra  of  the 
book  of  Maccabees ;  of  Bezetha,  the  fourth  quarter  and  last  added 
euburb  of  the  city;  the  position  of  the  Towers  Hippicus,  Phasaelus, 


398  NEHEMIAH   THE   WALL-BUILDER. 

and  Mariamme,  and  of  the  Tower  Pheshinus,  which,  if  determined, 
would  go  far  to  settle  the  disputed  question  of  the  course  of  the  sec- 
ond and  third  walls  of  Josephus  ;  the  exact  extent  of  the  city  in  the 
time  of  our  Saviour;  are  matters  of  keen  dispute,  which  can  only 
be  settled  by  patient  and  systematic  burrowing  into  the  debris  pro- 
duced by  many  successive  demolitions  of  the  city  at  those  points 
where  the  absence  of  inhabited  houses  renders  it  possible  to  excavate 
at 

It  was  always  a  matter  of  interest  to  me,  and  especially  in  the  days 
of  that  vilified  order,  "the  Conservators,"  to  follow  Nehemiah  under- 
gtandingly  in  his  remarkable  nocturnal  survey  of  Jerusalem.  "  It  is 
quite  a  proper  thing  to  compare  Nehemiah,  the  Tirshatha  of  the 
Jews,  the  renowned  wall-builder  of  the  Jewish  restoration,  the  philan- 
thropic Peabody  of  his  day,  whose  large  wealth  was  profusely  expended 
in  the  strengthening  of  Jerusalem  and  the  care  of  its  poor,  to  a  Free- 
mason, jealous  of  his  honor,  zealous  in  his  work,  feeling  his  respon- 
sibility to  the  Grand  Architect  of  the  Universe  for  the  manner  in 
which  he  spends  his  days.  Such  a  comparison  is  just  in  all  its  parts. 
The  history  of  this  perfect  model  of  a  just  and  generous  man  is 
contained  in  the  interesting  book  which  bears  his  name :  that  he  was 
"the  son  of  Hachaliah"  and  apparently  of  the  tribe  of  Judah;  that 
he  was  born  during  the  Babylonish  captivity,  about  B.C.  500,  and 
that,  at  the  opening  of  his  biography,  he  was  "the  cup-bearer"  of 
King  Artaxerxes  Longimanus,  residing  during  the  winter  season  at 
Shush  an,  are  the  principal  data  from  which  we  must  set  out.  In 
the  twentieth  year  of  that  king's  reign,  viz.,  B.C.  445,  in  the  month 
of  Chisleu,  or  December,  a  near  kinsman  of  his,  one  Hanani,  brought 
him  intelligence  from  Jerusalem  that  affected  him  deeply. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  in  the  year  B.C.  536  (ninety-one  years  prior 
to  the  period  of  which  we  are  writing)  Zerubbabel  had  led  a  caravan  of 
his  people  back  from  Babylonia  to  Jerusalem.  These  had  rebuilt  the 
temple  and  portions  of  the  city.  Seventy-nine  years  after  that  Ezra  led 
a  second  caravan  back  to  Jerusalem.  But  the  united  efforts  of  these 
bands  and  their  posterity  had  done  but  little  to  restore  Israel  to  its 
former  glory.  Marauders  made  property  and  life  insecure ;  murder 
and  robbery  were  rife  even  within  the  streets  of  Jerusalem  ;  the  people 
had  largely  abandoned  the  religion  of  their  fathers,  and  the  whole 
nation  was  in  a  state  of  abject  affliction  and  reproach.  This  was  the 
intelligence  which  had  reached  the  ears  of  Nehemiah  through  his 
kinsman  Hanani. 


NOCTURNAL   RECONNAISSANCE.  399 

A  prudent  man,  he  gave  himself  until  the  following  April  to  con- 
eider  how  best  he  could  heal  the  wounds  of  his  people.  A  pious  man, 
he  offered  the  prayer  which  his  own  pen  had  recorded,  styling  God 
"  the  great  and  terrible  God  that  keepeth  covenant  and  mercy,"  con- 
fessing that  his  people  "had  not  kept  his  commandments,  statutes, 
nor  judgments,"  and  asking  that  God  would  prosper  his  purposes  in 
behalf  of  Jerusalem,  and  "give  him  mercy  in  the  sight  of  the  king." 
This  being  done,  he  laid  before  the  king  the  doleful  case  of  Israel ; 
and,  upon  the  monarch's  asking  him,  "  For  what  dost  thou  make 
request  ?  "  plead  that  "  he  might  be  sent  to  Judah  to  rebuild  it." 
The  favor  was  granted  in  the  largest  measure.  Nehemiah  was  made 
the  governor  of  Judah,  with  the  power  of  life  and  death ;  a  mounted 
guard  was  furnished  him  ;  letters  to  the  governors  of  the  intervening 
districts  were  given  him  by  the  king;  special  orders  were  issued  that 
he  should  be  supplied  with  timber  from  the  king's  forests;  and  so  he 
set  forth,  amply  furnished  and  indorsed. 

His  worst  anticipations  as  to  the  condition  of  Jerusalem  and  the 
Jewish  nation  were  realized  upon  his  arrival.  A  late  writer  says :  "  It 
is  impossible  to  overestimate  the  importance  to  the  future  political 
and  ecclesiastical  prosperity  of  the  Jewish  nation  "  of  the  coming  of 
this  patriotic  governor.  He  spent  but  three  days  in  preparations, 
for  he  was  bound  by  promise  to  return  to  the  king  at  a  set  time ;  and 
then  began,  but  at  first  secretly,  the  most  important  work  (that  of 
building  the  city  walls).  Arising  "in  the  night,"  he  and  "some  few 
men  "  with  him,  telling  no  man  "  what  his  God  had  put  in  his  heart 
to  do  at  Jerusalem,"  the  little  company — all  save  himself  being  on 
foot — made  the  circumambulation  of  the  ruins  of  Jerusalem,  with 
a  view  to  the  speedy  rebuilding  of  the  walls. 

This  nocturnal  reconnoissance  has  been  until  recently  a  blind 
track  to  Bible-readers.  The  labors  of  Dr.  J.  T.  Barclay,  for  many 
years  a  missionary  at  Jerusalem,  and  a  most  diligent  explorer  of  the 
ancient  city,  at  length  set  up  so  many  of  the  fallen  "  metes  and  bounds  " 
as  to  enable  me  to  nearly  follow  the  steps  of  the  great  Tirshatha 
around  its  area.  Dr.  Barclay's  solution  of  this  zigzag  problem  is  con- 
tained in  the  parentheses.  Nehemiah  says :  "  I  went  out  by  the  gate 
of  the  valley  (the  Joppa  Gate),  even  before  the  dragon  well  (the  pool 
in  the  valley  on  the  west),  and  (turning  to  the  left)  to  the  dung  port 
(500  yards  south),  and  viewed  the  walls  of  Jerusalem  on  the  west 
side.  Then  (having  gone  round  the  point  of  Mount  Zion  to  the 
south)  I  went  on  to  the  gate  of  the  fountain  (by  the  pool  of  Siloam), 


400  ENTHUSIASTIC   RESPONSE. 

and  (turning  round  the  point  of  Mount  Ophel  to  the  south  and  east) 
to  the  King's  Pool  (the  Fount  of  the  Virgin) ;  but  there  was  no  place 
for  the  beast  that  was  under  me  to  pass  (owing  to  the  accumulation 
of  water  and  rubbish  there).  Then  I  went  up  in  the  night  by  the 
brook  (Kedron),  and  viewed  the  wall  (on  the  east  side  of  the  city), 
and  turned  back  and  entered  (again)  by  the  gate  of  the  valley  (the 
Joppa  Gate),  and  so  returned."  To  sum  up  this  reconnoissance,  tho 
reader  has  only  to  take  a  map  of  Jerusalem,  observe  that  the  zealous 
governor  went  out  at  the  Joppa  Gate,  turned  to  the  left,  circumam- 
bulated Mount  Zion  to  Siloam,  then  round  the  point  of  Ophel  to  the 
valley  east  of  the  Temple.  He  then  turned  back,  and  retraced  his 
journey  to  the  Joppa  Gate. 

Having,  like  a  skillful  engineer,  estimated  the  amount  of  labor  neces- 
sary to  be  done,  he  now  called  together  "  the  priests,  the  nobles,  and 
the  rulers,"  and  in  nervous  language  exhorted  them  to  duty.  He  re- 
minded them  of  the  prevalent  distress,  Jerusalem  waste,  and  her  gates 
burned  with  fire,  and  said,  "  Come,  let  us  build  up  the  wall  of  Jeru- 
salem, that  we  be  no  more  a  reproach."  He  told  them  of  God's 
answer  to  his  prayer  in  the  distant  land  of  exile,  and  of  the  kindness 
and  liberality  of  the  king ;  and  so  wrought  upon  them  by  his  appeals 
that  they  cried  out,  " let  us  rise  up  and  build"  and  set  themselves 
with  decision  to  the  work.  Only  one  exception  is  noted  in  the  popu- 
lar response ;  the  Tekoite  nobles  "  put  not  their  necks  to  the  work 
of  the  Lord  ;  all  the  rest  had  a  mind  to  the  work."  With  such  energy 
did  the  people  labor,  that  in  a  wonderfully  short  time  the  walls 
emerged  from  the  heaps  of  rubbish  and  encircled  the  city  as  in  days 
of  old.  Dividing  the  wall  into  ten  parts,  corresponding  with  the 
quarters  of  the  city  nearest  which  they  dwelt  respectively,  the  princes 
and  leaders  vied  with  each  other  in  self-sacrifice  and  industry,  and  so 
in  fifty-two  days  the  work  was  accomplished. 

Agreeably  to  his  promise  to  the  king,  Nehemiah  then  returned  to 
Babylon.  He  paid  a  second  visit  to  Jerusalem,  perhaps  a  third,  at 
one  of  which  he  performed  the  splendid  and  triumphant  ceremonial 
of  dedicating  the  walls.  This  festival  occasion  is  minutely  described 
in  the  Book  of  Nehemiah. 

In  summing  up  the  character  of  this  man,  we  indorse  the  views  of 
a  late  writer,  that  we  are  unable  to  find  a  single  fault  to  counterbal- 
ance his  many  and  great  virtues.  For  pure  and  disinterested  patriot- 
ism he  stands  unrivalled.  He  firmly  repressed  the  exactions  of  the 
nobles  and  the  rich,  and  rescued  the  p<x>r  Jews  from  spoliation  and 


GODFREY   THE   GOOD.  401 

slavery.  He  refused  to  receive  his  lawful  allowance  as  governor  from 
;he  people,  in  consideration  of  their  poverty,  during  the  whole  twelve 
years  that  he  was  in  office,  but  kept  at  his  own  charge  a  table  for  150 
Jews,  at  which  any  who  returned  from  captivity  were  welcome. 

I  know  of  nothing  to  excite  the  interest  of  a  Freemason  in  this 
building  so  much  as  the  thought  that  here  repose  the  ashes  of  knight- 
hood's noblest  exponent,  Godfrey  de  Boulion.  Here  I  read  his 
inscription,  which  expresses  a  volume :  Hie  jacet  inclytus  Dux 
Godefridus  de  Bulion,  qui  totam  istam  terram  acquisivit  cultui 
Christiana  :  cujus  anima  regnet  cum  Christo.  Amen.  Let  all  who 
can  admire  dignity,  virtue,  generosity,  and  humanity  combined  m 
one  noble  soul,  answer,  Amen,  so  mote  it  be  ! 

It  has  been  said  of  the  inimitable  Godfrey,  that  in  him  the  gentlest 
manners  were  united  to  the  firmest  spirit ;  the  amiableness  of  virtue 
to  its  commanding  gravity.  He  was  alike  distinguished  for  political 
courage  and  for  personal  bravery.  His  lofty  mind  was  capable  of 
the  grandest  enterprises.  His  deportment  was  moral.  His  piety  was 
fervent.  He  regretted  the  stern  necessity  that  drew  him  from  the 
immediate  service  of  God ;  but  when  in  arms  he  was  a  hero.  And 
his  martial  zeal  in  the  cause  of  heaven  was  always  directed  by  pru- 
dence and  tempered  by  philanthropy.  Faithful  to  his  first  simple 
wish  of  becoming  the  defender  and  advocate  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre, 
and  pressed  as  he  was  by  the  voice  of  all  the  chiefs  of  the  Crusade,  he 
nevertheless  refused  to  wear  a  diadem  in  the  city  where  his  Sa- 
viour had  worn  a  crown  of  thorns.  His  tomb,  by  which  I  stood, 
was  watered  not  alone  by  the  tears  of  friends,  but  honored  by  the 
commendations  of  many  of  the  Moslems,  whose  affections  his  natural 
virtues  had  conciliated. 

Godfrey  was  elected  by  the  army,  A.D.  1099,  first  king  of  the  Latin 
monarchy  of  Jerusalem,  but  declined,  accepting  only  the  title  of 
Defender  of  the  Tomb  of  Christ.  He  granted  a  donation  to  the  St, 
John's  Hospital,  which  had  been  established  at  Jerusalem  in  1048  (fifty- 
one  years  before),  in  which  act  he  was  followed  by  the  other  princes. 
This,  in  fact,  originated  the  order  of  St  John  of  Jerusalem,  with 
which  many  of  the  Crusader  knights  became  affiliated,  adding  to  the 
usual  vows  of  poverty,  chastity,  and  obedience,  those  of  caring  for 
the  sick  and  warring  against  Mohammedanism.  Godfrey  died  the 
following  year,  five  days  preceding  the  first  anniversary  of  his  gov- 
ernment. His  spurs  are  preserved  here ;  also  that  formidable  sword 
with  which,  A.D.  1098,  on  the  bridge  of  Antioch,  he  clove  in  twain  a 
gigantic  Saracen. 

26 


402  THE   CHOICE   OF   GODFREY. 

So  transcendent  were  the  virtues  of  Godfrey,  that  Tasso  closes  his 
immortal  poem  of  Jerusalem  Delivered  by  describing  his  passage, 
armed  as  he  was  and  in  his  sanguine  vest,  to  the  Temple,  where  he 

"  Hung  up  his  arms,  his  bannered  spoils  displayed, 
And  at  the  Sacred  Tomb  his  vowed  devotion  paid ! " 

My  own  lines  upon  the  immortal  Godfrey  are  here  given : 

THE   CHOICE   OF   GODFREY. 

Not  where  the  Saviour  bore 

Thorns  on  his  brow ; 
Not  where  my  king  upon 

Cross-tree  did  bow ; 
•  Not  where  the  Prince  of  Life 

Sorrowed  and  groaned, 
Godfrey  shall  ever  be 

Homaged  and  crowned. 

Mine  be  the  humbler  name, 

Fitter  by  far, 
"  Warder  of  Tomb  Divine, 

Christ's  Sepulchre ! " 
Mine  at  its  portal 

In  armor  to  lie ! 
Mine  in  death's  ministry 

When  I  shall  die. 

Knight  of  Christ's  Sepulchre, 

Christ's  Chevalier, 
Good  Sword  of  Jesus, 

Oh,  live  grandly  here ! 
Ashes  of  Godfrey,  there's 

No  place  like  this, 
Crowned  in  Christ's  glory 

And  reigning  in  bliss ! 

It  would  be  easy  to  fill  this  book  with  the  notes  and  memoran- 
dums made  relative  to  the  street-scenes  of  Jerusalem.  If  I  am  not 
mistaken,  such  things  constitute  a  class  of  facts  perused  with  avidity 
by  all,  and  whatever  real  originality  a  man  can  throw  around  so  worn 
and  trite  a  theme  as  Jerusalem,  must  be  looked  for  in  this  direction. 
Therefore  I  will  be  somewhat  diffuse  upon  this  subject,  and  copy 
tin  notes  from  my  diary  as  made 


STREET  SCENES   IN   JERUSALEM.  403 

STREET-SCENES   IN   JERUSALEM. 

A  little  girl  about  six  years  old,  another  little  girl  about  twelve, 
playing  camel,  and  the  big  girl  is  the  camel.  She  kneels  down  as 
camels  do.  Then  the  little  one  climbs  her  back,  clasps  hands  over 
her  forehead,  kicks  her  in  the  side  and  makes  a  noise  as  cameliers  da 
The  big  girl  screams  and  gets  up  awkwardly,  as  a  camel  does,  turns  her 
head  back,  grinds  her  teeth,  spits  and  shrieks,  then  away  they  both 
go,  laughing  just  as  such  a  merry  pair  of  sisters  ought  to.  All  the 
dress  the  two  girls  have  on  wouldn't  cover  a  candle-stand  decently. 
Their  clothes  are  made  of  blue  cotton  of  the  thinnest,  cheapest,  and 
raggedest  character.  But,  oh,  what  a  merry  game  of  camel  they  do 
play! 

A  chicken-peddler  with  strings  of  poultry  swung  all  over  him. 
The  man  is  covered  with  hens.  A  rooster's  head  is  sticking  out 
where  his  head  ought  to  be.  An  enormous  pair  of  wings  flaps  over 
his  shoulders,  reminding  me  of  the  ridiculous  old  angel  that  I  saw 
painted  in  a  Greek  church  yesterday. 

Three  laboring  men  sitting  on  the  sidewalk  near  me,  eating  their 
breakfast.  Their  only  victuals  are  libbarn,  or  curdled  milk,  in  a 
small  wooden  dish,  and  bread  that  looks  like  such  black  sawdust  as 
mahogany-wood  makes.  I  gave  them  some  boiled  eggs.  Nobody 
ever  saw  eggs  boiled  so  hard  as  they  boil  them  in  Jerusalem.  They 
must  keep  them  on  hand  ready  boiled.  They  boil  them  over  night. 
Never  was  a  lot  of  boiled  eggs  swallowed  so  fast  before.  Then  the 
grateful  fellows  came  up  to  thank  me.  Each  one  put  his  right  hand 
under  my  right  hand  so  as  just  to  touch  it,  and  raised  it  up  to  his  lips 
and  kissed  it.  This  is  the  way  they  do  here.  They  went  off  without 
even  asking  me  for  baclcslieesh.  Probably  they  forgot  it. 

A  dog,  lying  under  the  window,  suckles  her  four  pups,  young 
things  whose  eyes  are  not  yet  opened.  The  sidewalk  is  only  twenty 
inches  wide.  Thousands  of  people  pass  along  this  sidewalk  every 
hour.  Yet  the  creature  gave  birth  to  them  there,  and  she  will  bring 
them  up  there ;  for  nobody  will  disturb  her  on  that  narrow  sidewalk. 
At  first  she  snarled  at  me,  for  she  doesn't  like  the  style  of  my  clothes ; 
but  after  I  bought  her  a  string  of  Jcabobs  and  some  bread,  she  changed 
her  mind.  She  saw  that,  after  all,  these  outlandish  clothes  may  cover 
a  human  heart.  And  now.  while  I  am  writing  up  her  family,  she 
wags  her  tail,  and  turns  her  one  motherly  eye  upon  me  with  a  grate- 
ful expression. 


404  STREET   SCENES   IX   JERUSALEM. 

A  furious  dog-fight  surging  down  the  street,  nearly  carries*  me  off 
my  feet.  Hassan,  who  was  smoking  outside  a  cafe  near  me,  came  up 
with  his  koorbash,  and  went  in  for  them.  Anything  like  humanity 
seems  foolishness  to  these  people.  They  used  to  sew  up  their  prison- 
ers in  asses'  skins,  and  then  burn  them  alive ;  to  cut  their  feet  and 
hands  off;  burn  out  their  eyes  with  hot  irons ;  tear  out  their  tongues 
by  the  roots.  Hassan  says  he  would  love  to  treat  his  enemies  that 
way;  and  I  believe  him.  He  told  me  of  a  family  of  four  brothers, 
living  on  Mount  Lebanon,  whose  feet,  hands,  tongues,  and  eyes  were 
destroyed  by  a  cruel  tyrant  more  than  thirty  years  ago.  All  the  time 
this  dog-fight  was  going  on,  the  mother  lay  perfectly  unconcerned, 
suckling  her  little  dogs.  The  heroes  of  the  two  factions  had  agreed 
that  she,  at  least,  shouldn't  be  meddled  with ;  though,  to  look  at 
them,  you  wouldn't  think  there  was  so  much  gallantry  in  them. 

I  enjoyed  the  joke  of  an  English  sailor  measuring  the  width  of 
the  streets  by  lying  down  across  them.  He  had  been  to  Jerusalem 
before,  and  had  made  a  bet  with  another  sailor  that  he  was  as  long 
as  the  street  is  wide.  So  he  tried  it  in  a  dozen  places,  and  won  the 
bet  every  time,  for  his  head  touched  one  side  and  his  feet  the  other. 
t  am  afraid  he  was  drunk ;  at  last  a  donkey  tipped  a  load  of  oak 
roots  on  him. 

The  quantity  of  sugar-cane  that  is  sold  in  the  bazaars  of  Jerusa- 
lem surprises  me.  I  used  to  notice  the  little  negroes,  in  Louisiana. 
all  day  long,  chewing  sugar-cane.  The  custom  is  almost  as  common 
among  the  children  here.  It  reminds  me  how  surprised  the  Crusa- 
ders were  when  they  found  at  Tripoli,  sweet,  honeyed  reeds,  called 
zookra,  which  they  sucked,  and  liked  so  much  that  they  could  not  be 
satisfied. 

The  musses  made  sometimes  in  these  narrow  streets  make  the  very 
Turks  laugh.  The  Turks  hardly  ever  laugh.  I  watched  a  muss.  A 
camel,  loaded  with  vegetables,  was  coming  down  the  narrow  street. 
On  each  side  of  him  great  sacks-full  bulged  out.  Piles  of  cauliflow- 
ers that  grew  around  here,  most  as  large  as  a  bushel-basket,  weiv 
heaped  mountain  high,  on  his  hump.  He  loomed  up  like  Vesuvius, 
as  he  came  stalking  along,  his  head  level,  his  monstrous  under-jaw 
swinging  round  the  upper  one  like  a  barn-door  on  its  hinges,  hi.s 
wide,  spongy  feet  flattening  out  on  the  stone  pavement,  in  tracks 
like  a  mammoth's.  As  he  came  along,  his  rider  roared  Ruak,  ruak. 
thit  is.  Get  out  of  the  way.  And  everybody  did  get  out  of  the  way. 
i):n-  \vomun.  who  was  carrying  a  bread-tray  on  her  head,  dove  down 


STEEET  SCENES   IN  JEBUSALEM.  405 

below  the  camel's  stomach,  and  so  got  out.  I  jumped  into  one  of  the 
little  shops  where  they  sell  cakes.  The  merchant  was  fumbling  over 
his  rosary  and  praying.  But  he  stopped  praying  and  tried  to  sell  me 
some  eggs — a  piastre  a  dozen.  The  rest  of  the  crowd  jumped  into 
the  stores  right  and  left  as  I  had  done.  But  just  as  the  camel  had 
passed  rne,  he  met  a  procession  of  six  donkeys,  all  loaded  down  with 
oak -roots,  the  drivers  on  top.  Here  ivas  a  muss.  The  camel  screamed. 
The  camel-driver  yelled,  Ruak,  ruaTc,  Get  out  of  the  way.  The  don- 
keys raised  their  tails  and  brayed.  The  donkey-drivers  swore.  I 
wondered  how  the  thing  would  be  settled,  for  the  donkeys  could  not 
turn  round  for  their  lives,  as  their  roots  just  filled  up  the  width  of 
the  streets.  The  camel  could  not  turn  round  without  pulling  down 
the  buildings  on  both  sides  of  him.  Never  was  such  an  uproar.  A 
soldier  poked  the  camel's  legs  with  his  bayonet  to  make  him  bite. 
At  last,  the  men  shouldered  the  donkeys,  roots  and  all,  and  carried 
them  backwards  into  the  side  streets,  and  so  let  the  camel  pass.  Such 
scenes  must  be  common  here,  in  the  business  parts  of  the  city,  espe- 
cially at  this  time,  when  there  are  more  than  five  thousand  strangers 
here. 

Right  behind  this  camel  walked  a  ferocious  bull,  who  had  each  of 
his  horns  tied  up  with  a  wisp  of  hay,  recalling  the  Latin  maxim, 
fcenum  in  cornu  habet — he  has  hay  on  his  horns. 

How  the  people  of  this  country  do  detest  and  despise  dogs !  They 
seem  afraid  to  touch  them.  They  suffer  the  poor,  cowardly  wretches, 
that  look  more  like  wolf  than  dog,  to  lie  right  across  the  sidewalk 
and  block  it  up.  Instead  of  driving  a  mangy  cur  out  of  the  way, 
they  actually  walk  around  him,  lest  their  clothes  should  touch  him. 
I  used  up  a  beautiful  olive-wood  cane  to-day,  that  I  had  just  bought, 
by  striking  it  over  the  back  of  a  monstrous  brute  that  would  not 
get  out  of  the  way  when  I  hallooed  to  him.  The  cane  flew  into  sliv- 
ers like  glass.  They  bark  at  me  incessantly,  seeming  to  hate  new- 
fashioned  dresses.  I  suppose  if  I  would  wear  the  native  dress  they 
would  not  bark  at  me.  Maybe  that  is  the  reason  the  people  wear 
the  same  fashions  that  Abraham  did ;  it  pleases  the  dogs.  The  peo- 
ple here  won't  even  talk  about  dogs.  They  won't  answer  questions 
about  dogs.  If  they  say  anything  in  reply  to  such  questions  it  is 
Mar  arrif,  that  is,  /  don't  know.  The  Jews  hate  dogs  as  bad  as  the 
Mohammedans ;  yet  they  lived  in  Egypt  more  than  two  hundred 
years,  and  the  Egyptian  sieved  the  dog  enough  to  make  an  idol  of  him. 
So  tbey  lived  for  many  centuries  under  the  Roman  rule;  and  the 


406  DOG   LAWS. 

Romans  honored  and  respected  the  dog.  But  this  makes  no  difference 
with  them.  Jews  never  learn  anything  from  other  nations.  What 
they  don't  know  isn't  worth  knowing.  Jerusalem  dogs  are  all  of  one 
breed.  And  such  a  breed!  You  never  see  here  the  bluff,  surly, 
sturdy,  intelligent  mastiff;  nor  the  slight-built  greyhound  ;  nor  the 
sharp,  shrewd  terrier ;  nor  the  silent,  courageous  bulldog;  nor  the 
tawny,  deep-voiced  bloodhound ;  nor  the  noble  Newfoundland.  In- 
stead of  that,  these  are  all  gaunt,  half-starved  curs,  mere  scavengers 
of  garbage,  street-cleaners,  who  need  cleaning  themselves  worse  than 
the  streets. 

The  dogs  here  seem  to  have  a  regular  constitution  and  set  of  by- 
laws, not  written  out  or  printed,  but  none  the  less  enforced.  While 
sitting  one  day  in  a  cool  cavern,  I  jotted  down  what  I  suppose  to  be 
their  regulations : 

Rule  1.  The  City  of  Jerusalem  is  divided  into  ten  dog-districts. 

Rule  2.  No  dog  shall  ever  go  outside  of  the  district  in  which  he 
is  born.  Penalty,  death. 

Rule  3.  The  strongest  dog  in  his  district  shall  be  the  dog-sheikh 
in  that  district  until  some  stronger  dog  whips  him.  Then,  the 
stronger  dog  shall  take  his  place. 

Rule  4.  When  the  dog-sheikh  barks,  all  the  dogs  in  his  district 
shall  bark  too. 

Rule  5.  When  the  dogs  in  one  district  bark,  all  the  dogs  in  all 
the  other  districts  shall  bark  too. 

Rule  6.  No  dog  shall  move  out  of  a  man's  way. 

I  was  surprised  to  see  all  the  houses  of  Jerusalem  numbered  on 
the  doors.  Hassan  says  they  tax  people  here  not  according  to  the 
number  of  persons  in  the  family,  but  according  to  the  number  of 
houses!  So  the  governor  has  had  them  all  numbered.  Of  coursf 
they  use  the  Arabic  figures.  Miyah  thalata  aasher,  means  113 
Thamarneen  arbaah,  is  84.  Alf  sittah,  is  1006. 

I  watched  a  poor  fellah — that  is  what  they  call  a  farmer — com- 
ing in  through  the  Joppa  Gate  with  a  load  of  oak-roots  from  near 
Hebron.  The  ground  in  that  direction  is  full  of  oak-roots,  although 
only  a  stray  oak  here  and  there  has  been  seen  up  that  way  for  hun- 
dreds of  years.  These  oak-roots,  when  dried,  burn  first-rate ;  and 
the  people  cf  Jerusalem  buy  them  for  fuel. 

How  they  will  tax  that  poor  farmer  before  he  gets  home  to-night ! 
His  load  of  roots  is  worth  in  Jerusalem  about  a  dollar,  but  not  much 
good  of  that  lollar  will  he  get;  for,  first,  the  soldiers  of  Joppa  Gate 


THE  VILLAGE  TYRANTS.  40? 

will  charge  him  eight  cents  for  permission  to  pass  the  custom-house 
vrith  a  load  of  fuel.  The  gate-duties  on  tobacco  and  silk  are  forty 
cents  a  pound  ;  on  all  other  articles  eight  per  cent.  At  the  bazaars, 
they  will  charge  him  ten  cents  more  for  market-duties  and  permis- 
sion to  sell  his  fuel.  Then  when  he  goes  back  through  the  gate 
they  will  charge  him  ten  cents  more  for  duties  on  the  tobacco  and 
cloth  he  has  bought.  And  finally,  when  he  gets  home  to-night,  the 
sheikh  of  his  village  will  make  him  pay  at  least  ten  cents  more  for 
his  share  of  stealage.  So  there  is  fifty  per  cent,  or  one-half  the  value 
of  his  property,  that  will  be  paid  to-day  to  this  extortionate,  iniqui- 
tous government. 

I  spend  a  good  deal  of  time  to-day  at  the  Damascus  Gate.  They 
call  it  here  Bab-es-Sham.  This  is  the  one  that  Dr.  Barclay  thinks 
was  called  in  the  Bible  The  Old  Gate.  (Nehemiah  iii.  6.)  Very  con- 
siderable and  interesting  remains  of  the  ancient  structure  are  yet 
to  be  seen  in  the  towers  on  each  side  of  this  gate.  An  old  Jewish 
tower  and  stairway  are  perfectly  preserved  there.  He  thinks  that 
this  is  the  same  kind  of  stairway  named  in  1  Kings  vi.  8  :  "  They 
went  up  with  winding  stairs  into  the  middle  chamber  and  out  of  the 
middle  into  the  third." 

I  copied  from  this  gate  some  ornaments  of  the  modern  style.  I 
see  a  great  deal  of  this  sort  of  figuring  on  the  houses  at  Joppa  and 
Jerusalem.  It  looks  very  pretty  when  well  cut. 

As  I  passed  a  convent,  of  which  there  are  many  here  at  Jerusalem, 
a  lot  of  priests  peeped  out  through  the  grated  windows  at  me.  One 
of  them  was  a  jolly  red-nosed  fellow.  He  said  to  me,  Min  aineja  yee. 
That  means,  Where  do  you  come  from  ?  I  told  x  him  the  United 
States  of  America  and  State  of  Kentucky.  Then  he  said,  Charteerah, 
that  is,  Good-bye.  These  priests  looked  like  rows  of  convicts  squint- 
ing through  grated  windows.  They  seem  unhappy  and  unhealthy, 
and  of  course  they  are. 

What  a  lot  of  village  sheikhs  there  are,  hanging  round  Jerusalem ! 
They  come  in  every  day,  from  five  to  ten  miles  around,  and  loaf  here. 
I  think  I  have  met  a  hundred  this  week.  Most  all  of  them  want 
backsheesh.  If  I  ask  them  any  questions,  the  first  one  is,  Do  you 
know  the  name  of  the  Sultan  of  Turkey  ?  Only  about  one  in  five  can 
tell  me.  And  yet  his  name,  Abd-el-Asiz,  is  stamped  on  every  piece 
of  money  !  It  is  little  they  read  what  is  stamped  on  money.  Every 
village  has  at  least  one  sheikh.  Bethel,  with  only  thirty  houses,  has 
two.  This  reminds  me  of  the  passage,  "  For  the  transgressions  of  a 


408  STREET  SCENES   IN  JERUSALEM. 

land,  many  are  the  princes  thereof."  (Prov.  xxviii.  2.)  These  sheikhs 
are  said  to  be  very  tyrannical,  in  their  small,  mean  way,  and  the  pas- 
sage in  Proverbs  xxviii.  3,  just  fits  them  :  "  The  poor  man  that  op- 
presseth  the  poor,  is  like  a  sweeping  rain  that  leaveth  no  food." 

I  met  a  couple  of  musicians,  one  playing  a  sort  of  one-stringed 
fiddle,  and  singing  like  a  good-fellow ;  the  other  collecting  backsheesh. 
The  singing  was  bad  enough,  but  the  one-stringed  fiddle  was  fearful. 
The  string  was  an  inch  wide.  If  it  had  been  wider,  I  don't  think  I 
could  have  stood  it  at  all.  I  asked  Hassan  what  the  song  was  about, 
He  hesitated,  and  said  it  was  a  love-song,  and  meant  that  the  sun 
beams  from  a  lady's  eyes ;  the  seven  stars  shine  from  her  mouth ;  the 
full  moon  rises  from  her  breast — and  a  good  deal  more  that  he 
wouldn't  tell  me.  I  was  quite  satisfied  with  that  specimen. 

I  saw  a  man  drinking  water  out  of  a  little  earthen  cruse.  He  held 
it  six  inches  over  his  mouth  and  poured  the  water  down  his  throat 
It  didn't  strangle  him  a  bit.  I  tried  it ;  poured  most  of  the  water 
down  my  bosom,  and  choked  myself  with  the  rest. 

A  man  was  watering  the  streets  from  large  skin  bags  under  his 
arms.  He  has  the  nack  of  it,  and  doesn't  waste  a  great  deal  of 
water. 

A  consular  dragoman  or  cawass  went  by  with  solemn  mien  and 
silver  stick,  a  long  curved  sword,  long  silver-headed  staflf,  splendid 
uniform,  and  a  strut  equal  to  the  drum-major  of  the  Forty-third  Xew 
York.  He  reminds  me  of  the  saying  here :  "  Buy  a  pipe  and  give  a 
napoleon  for  it ;  let  your  dragoman  buy  it  and  give  two."  They  are 
great  cheats. 

They  are  shoeing  a  horse  close  by.  To  keep  him  from  biting,  they 
fasten  a  hook-em-snivey  in  the  upper  lip,  something  like  a  clothes- 
pin. The  blacksmith-shop  measures  seven  by  nine  feet;  so  they 
have  to  shoe  the  horse  out  in  the  street.  The  blacksmith  has  a  hole 
dug  in  the  middle  of  his  floor,  so  he  can  have  the  anvil  on  the  level  of 
his  arm,  and  thus  he  need  not  stoop  to  his  work. 

At  a  corner  is  a  place  where  three  dog-districts  meet — you  can  see 
delegates  from  all  three  of  them.  They  will  not  cross  the  line.  I 
tried  them  with  a  piece  of  bread.  But  they  know  the  penalty  too 
well,  and  are  cautious.  Such  law-abiding  dogs  as  they  are ! 

There  is  a  donkey-stand  here ;  a  blacksmith-shop ;  two  copper- 
smiths, making  a  terrific  din ;  three  bakers'  shops ;  another  copper- 
smith ;  another  donkey-stand ;  and  a  confectioner's,  all  within  one 
hundred  »teps,  on  this  side  of  the  street 


STREET   SCENES   IN   JERUSALEM.  409 

A  man  with  a  board  on  his  head,  covered  with  cakes.  He  saya 
they  are  muldoon.  I  bought  some,  and  they  are  nothing  but  corn- 
meal  cakes,  dried,  without  baking,  and  then  frosted  over  with  sugar, 
Muldoon  is  a  humbug.  Yet  he  sold  them  fast,  and  everybody 
seemed  to  like  them,  except  me. 

A  man  with  Joppa  oranges.  Then  a  camel  loaded  with  green 
grass.  Then  some  pilgrims  from  Eussia,  wearing  sheepskin  dresses, 
with  the  wool  inside ;  full  of  life  were  those  dresses.  Then  a  group 
of  soldiers,  all  wearing  tarboushes,  and  a  fine-looking  negro  for  an 
officer.  He  stopped  politely  and  talked  with  me ;  wouldn't  let  his 
soldiers  ask  me  for  backsheesh.  He  had  three  medals  hanging  to 
his  coat-lapel.  Then  a  stately  old  man  with  cloak  trimmed  wi.vh 
fur.  In  this  country  a  common  man's  rank  and  position  may  be 
known  by  his  dress  just  as  much  as  an  officer's.  Then  a  party  of 
men  and  women  astride  donkeys  without  stirrups ;  the  saddles  hav- 
ing an  immense  cushion  in  front  to  keep  the  rider  from  flying  over 
his  head  when  the  donkey  stumbles,  which  he  is  very  fond  of  doing, 
and  of  lying  down,  too,  right  in  the  road.  Every  donkey  has  a  boy 
to  run  behind  and  poke  him  up  with  a  sharp  stick.  Then  some 
Desert  Arabs  with  large  yellow  handkerchiefs  on  their  heads  in  place 
of  the  tarboush,  tied  on  with  a  black  rope  made  of  camel's  hair,  all 
of  them  on  foot ;  they  walk  as  awkwardly  as  sailors.  Then  came  a 
flock  of  sheep  that  a  man  was  leading  through  the  noisy,  crowded 
streets  of  Jerusalem.  In  all  that  variety  of  sounds,  the  poor  things 
only  listened  for  the  voice  of  their  own  shepherd,  and  where  he  led 
they  followed.  But  I  might  write  all  day  and  not  finish  this  para- 
graph. 

I  «took  another  stand  about  two  squares  off,  and  counted  a  cook- 
shop,  a  tin-shop,  a  cook-shop,  a  blacksmith-shop,  a  cook-shop,  and  a 
tin-shop  all  in  a  row.  Went  into  a  number  of  carpenters'  shops; 
their  principal  business  is  making,  mending,  and  ornamenting  pipes, 
pipe-holders,  and  pipe-handles.  If  there  is  any  passage  of  Scripture 
they  remind  me  of  it  is  that  one  in  which  the  Israelites  are  said  to 
have  "piped  with  pipes."  (1  Kings i.  45.) 

Going  back  to  camp,  I  saw  a  crazy  man.  Among  the  Mohammed- 
ans crazy  men  are  worshiped.  This  one  was  nearly  naked,  very  crazy, 
and  very  dirty.  He  went  around  among  the  shops  taking  bread  and 
fruit,  whatever  he  wanted  to  eat.  Nobody  interrupted  him.  The 
shopkeepers  rather  seemed  to  like  it.  I  couldn't  help  thinking  if  he 
w;is  in  New  York  the  star-police  would  have  him  locked  up  in  ten 
minutes. 


410  STREET   SCENES   IN   JERUSALEM, 

At  the  Joppa  Gate  of  this  great  stone  patchwork,  J  saw  Arabic 
words  on  the  wall.  It  is  said  they  mean  that  the  present  walls  of 
Jerusalem  were  built  by  order  of  the  Sultan  Suleyman  in  948 ;  that  is,  in 
our  way  of  counting,  A.  D.  1542.  The  lizards  were  gliding  in  and  out 
of  the  walls  there  as  if  they  cared  nothing  for  the  mortar  of  Suleyman. 

To-day  I  have  found  musquitoes  in  Jerusalem  quite  troublesome. 

I  notice  that  nobody  I  have  talked  to  in  this  country  knows  the 
real  name  of  our  country,  The  United  States.  As  they  know  we 
come  from  America  they  call  us  Americans,  and  they  don't  know 
any  other  name  for  us.  The  British,  however,  call  us  Yankees.  I 
asked  an  Italian  gentleman  how  he  would  like  to  be  called  a 
European  ?  He  didn't  understand  me. 

Humanity  to  brutes  is  a  virtue  unknown  in  the  Holy  Land.  I 
wish  our  New  Yorker,  Mr.  Bergh,  could  be  pasha  here  for  twelve 
months.  The  drivers  shout  at  the  poor,  patient,  willing  mules. 
They  twist  their  tails,  overload  them,  curse  them  in  that  dreadful 
Arab  slang,  strike  them  over  the  head  and  face,  and  throw  stones  at 
them,  oh,  so  cruelly! 

The  streets  of  Jerusalem  to-day  are  full  of  pilgrims  dressed  in  all 
sorts  of  costumes,  and  travellers  who  are  not  pilgrims,  English, 
French,  German,  Americans,  etc.  A  sea-captain  rolling  along,  full  of 
arrack  and  sin,  caught  hold  of  my  arm  and  stopped  me,  and  said, 
"  Can  you  tell  me  anything  about  the  people  of  this  country  ? " 
Says  I, «  Yes,  I  can."  «  Well  then,"  said  he,  "  tell  it."  Said  I,  "  They 
never  refuse  backsheesh!  "  He  let  me  go  with  a  laugh  that  could  be  heard 
to  the  top  of  Mount  Olivet,  and  said  I  was  right.  There  is  one  class  of 
people  here,  however,  that  never  ask  for  backsheesh,  and  that  is  the  Jews. 

A  big  Arab  was  sitting  by  a  pile  of  oranges.  I  don't  know  which 
was  the  dirtiest,  the  fruit  or  the  fellow.  As  I  knew  that  the  oranges 
cost  him  in  Joppa  about  ten  for  a  cent,  1  priced  some  of  them  here 
at  Jerusalem.  They  were  five  for  a  piastre,  that  is  about  a  cent 
apiece.  I  told  him  that  was  a  thousand  per  cent,  profit  He  answer- 
ed, Backsheesh,  and  that  ended  the  argument.  His  oranges,  how- 
ever, were  not  the  fine  large  ones  that  I  admired  so  at  Joppa,  but  a 
much  inferior  stock. 

When  a  boy,  mother  has  checked  me  in  fault-finding  by  saying 
that  "  the  way  that  Jerusalem  is  kept  clean  is,  everybody  sweeps  the 
pavement  in  front  of  his  own  house."  She  is  mistaken.  Nobody  sweeps 
these  streets.  They  are  not  swept  at  all.  The  city  doesn't  look  aa 
though  it  ever  had  been  swept.  A  strange  mistake  for  mother  to 


THE   CAMP   OF   TITUS.  4|J 

make !     I  never  saw  a  town  that  has  so  many  disgusting  sights  and 
smells  as  this. 

I  got  a  friend  to  give  me  the  names  of  such  persons  as  he  should 
get  acquainted  with  to-day,  so  that  I  could  write  them  down  in  my 
diary.  They  are  a  queer  lot  of  words  to  call  people  by.  About  half 
the  natives  have  Mohammed  to  their  names,  and  the  other  half  have 
Hassan,  or  Hosseen,  or  Hosine.  As  far  as  I  can  write  the  names  he 
gave  me,  they  are :  Yahyah,  Haroun,  Yezid,  Meslem,  Hulakoo,  Akeel, 
Mustarfer,  Nasser,  Guzzaway,  Ibraheem,  Awad,  Karder,  Abdallah, 
Sayid,  Jussoof,  Kosroo,  Mosedden,  Noureddeen,  Solyman,  Sajeeb, 
Soofy,  Marlek,  Essedeen,  Haymoor,  Nomarn,  Nisamee,  Ferhard,  Maj- 
noon,  Narmer,  Mnedh-dhin,  Yebrood,  Abdellatti,  Dayood,  Goorundel, 
Howarrer.  A  Russian  gentleman  who  saw  what  I  was  doing,  took 
my  note-book  and  politely  wrote  his  name  in  it,  Kratismayoshajewsky, 
or  words  to  that  effect. 

After  visiting  Mount  Scopus,  I  undertook  to  reconstruct  in  imagina- 
tion the  Camp  of  Titus  built  on  that  summit. 

It  was  a  Standing  Camp  (campa  stafiva),  for  the  standards  were 
never  to  be  raised  from  their  sockets,  until  yonder  proud  and  doomed 
city  should  come  once  more  under  the  Roman  yoke.  In  form,  it  was 
square  (quadrata).  It  was  surrounded  by  a  ditch  (fossa)  some  nine 
feet  deep,  and  twelve  feet  broad.  A  rampart  (vallum]  was  composed 
of  the  earth  which  had  been  dug  from  the  ditch.  In  this  rampart, 
sharp  stakes  bristled,  pointing  outward  from  every  side. 

The  camp  had  four  gates,  one  on  each  side.  That  which  was  so 
long  presented  to  the  frowning  eyes  that  watched  it  morning  and 
evening,  from  the  walls  of  Jerusalem,  was  theporta  prcetoria.  .  The 
one  in  the  rear  was  the  porta  decumana;  those  on  the  east  and  west, 
porta  principalis  dextra  and  p.  p.  sinistra. 

The  camp  was  divided  into  two  parts.  The  upper  portion,  next 
the  enemy,  contained  the  tents  of  Titus  and  his  retinue,  also  the 
praetorium  cohort.  Near  him  were  his  lieutenant-generals,  and  the 
quaestor  those  of  the  tribunes,  prsefects  of  the  allies,  etc.,  etc.  Mr. 
H.  B.  Tristam  says :  "  There  is  one  of  the  Roman  camps  still  stand- 
ing near  Masada,  at  the  southwest  corner  of  the  Dead  Sea,  about  fifty 
miles  southeast  of  heie.  Its  lines,  angles,  ditch,  and  rampart  are  as 
plainly  sketched  there  as  in  the  pages  of  a  classical  dictionary.  And 
yet  the  hea  I  that  planned  it,  the  arms  that  built  it,  and  the  war-like 
spirits  that  defended  it,  are  but  the  dust  of  1800  years." 

Here  in  this  camp  of  Titus,  on  Mount  Scopus,  every  evening,  when 


412  THE   ROMAN  TRUMPET. 

the  general  had  dismissed  his  chief  officers  and  friends,  after  giving 
them  his  commands  and  distributing  the  watchword  of  the  night 
upon  tessffi  CB, — all  the  trumpets  of  the  legion  were  sounded : 

Tuba  mirum  spargens  sonum. 

This  scornful  challenge  to  the  enemy  was  promptly  taken  up  by 
Jewish  soldiers,  and  then  the  hills  around  Jerusalem  echoed  with 
the  sonorous  wind-instruments  used  at  that  period.  Those  martial 
sounds,  through  the  clear  evening  air,  reached  to  an  amazing  distance 
on  all  sides.  Flowing  over  the  range  of  Olivet,  they  were  heard  by 
the  Christian  refugees  at  Pella,  far  across  the  Jordan  in  the  north- 
east Flowing  over  the  range  of  Mizpah,  the  bold  and  thrilling  peals 
were  heard  by  the  Jewish  refugees  along  the  Plain  of  Sharon.  At 
Hebron,  at  Masada,  at  Bethel,  these  war-signals  were  recognized  as 
tokens  that  the  enemy  was  not  yet  in  possession  of  Jerusalem,  and 
great  was  the  joy  they  inspired. 

The  post-rest  ante,  or  post-office  at  Jerusalem,  is  a  queer  affair.  It 
is  only  open  once  or  twice  a  week.  It  is  a  hard  place  to  find,  and 
still  harder  to  get  the  postmaster  to  understand  your  wishes.  The 
custom  in  this  country  is  to  deliver  all  postal  matter,  as  our  carriers 
do  in  New  York.  Therefore,  if  you  want  your  letter  to  lie  in  the 
post-office,  you  must  mark  it  "  post-restante."  But  the  best  way  is 
to  have  all  correspondence  directed  to  the  care  of  the  American  Con- 
sulate. Letters  are  dispatched  by  the  French  post  from  Jerusalem 
for  England,  on  the  2d,  12th,  and  22d  of  each  month ;  for  Beyrout 
and  Constantinople  on  the  8th,  18th,  and  28th.  Rate  of  postage, 
fifteen  cents  per  one-quarter  of  an  ounce.  Letters  arrive  from  Eng- 
land on  the  10th,  20th,  and  30th ;  from  Beyrout  and  Constantinople  on 
the  4th,  14th,  and  24th.  Letters  from  Europe  and  Beyrout  are  only 
prepaid  as  far  as  Joppa.  Eight  cents  extra  is  charged  for  each  letter 
from  Joppa  to  Jerusalem,  about  thirty-five  miles.  The  package  con- 
taining our  diaries  for  the  past  week,  drawn  off  upon  thin  French 
paper,  weighed  ten  ounces.  The  prepaid  postage  on  it  was  six  dollars, 
that  is,  sixty  cents  per  ounce. 

I  visited  the  counting-room  of  Messrs.  Bergheim  &  Co.,  bankers 
here,  who  also  do  a  general  dry-goods  and  miscellaneous  business. 
These  gentlemen  are  highly  respected  both  by  natives  and  foreigners. 
They  have  been  very  useful  in  missionary  operations  in  Jerusalem 
and  vicinity.  The  manner  in  which  I  arranged  my  money  matters 
for  our  journey,  was  to  deposit  with  Messrs,  Brown,  Brothers  &  Co, 


LOWER   POOL   OF   GIHON".  413 

Wall-street,  New  York,  the  amount  necessary  for  the  journey.  For 
this  they  gave  me  letters  of  credit,  upon  which  I  can  raise  money  in 
any  part  of  the  world  where  there  is  a  banking-house. 

I  was  surprised  to  find  a  first-class  photographic  gallery  here. 

At  the  Lower  Pool  of  Gihon,  I  was  struck  with  the  immense  pre- 
parations of  that  wonderful  monarch,  King  Solomon,  for  the  water- 
supply  of  his  royal  city.  Massive  magnificence  is  the  grand  charac- 
teristic in  all  the  remains  of  Solomon's  work  extant.  This  reservoir, 
now  empty,  and  its  bed  green  with  barley,  was  a  miniature  lake  in 
itself.  Perhaps  a  miniature  fleet  may  once  have  been  moored  here, 
a  company  of  tiny  vessels  for  the  recreation  of  the  young  princes  of 
David's  house.  Doubtless  the  Wise  King  himself  often  promenaded 
along  its  margin  at  the  base  of  his  own  Mount  Zion,  while  the  royal 
minstrels  made  the  echoes  of  the  hills  resound  with  their  music. 
But  now,  nor  minstrel's  nor  shepherd's  pipe  nor  plowman's  song 
moves  these  echoes.  Sadness  inexpressible  broods  here.  Stillness 
and  sluggishness  reign  in  joint  dominion  over  Jerusalem. 

My  pleasantest  association  with  that  immense  reservoir,  that 
"  broken  cistern  that  holds  no  water,"  is  with  a  blooming  patch  of 
cyclamen,  presenting  many  large  and  handsome  specimens.  Its  cir- 
cle was  brilliant,  its  leaf  delicate  and  soft.  Here,  in  this  dry  bed  of 
King  Solomon's  Croton  Lake,  it  sparkles,  shooting  forth  among  its 
prickly  neighbors. 

It  was  in  the  mighty  amphitheatre  formed  by  this  valley  of  Gihon, 
between  the  Upper  and  Lower  Pools,  that  the  coronation  of  Solomon 
was  performed,  B.C.  1015,  and  his  brilliant  reign  of  forty  years  began. 
No  place  more  fitting  could  be  desired.  These  hills,  now  so  bald 
and  covered  as  to  their  shoulders  in  sackcloth,  were  then  crowded 
with  the  ten  thousands  of  Jerusalem.  The  royal  palaces  upon  Mount 
Zion,  overlooking  the  scene — palaces  whose  tesselated  pavements  lie 
now  in  disjointed  tesserce  through  these  heaps  of  rubbish — were 
thronged  with  women  and  children,  elate  with  an  event  that  promised 
so  much  for  Israel.  The  city  itself,  upon  its  throne  of  rock,  walled 
all  around,  inclosed  in  deep  valleys  and  marked  out  as  the  site  of  a 
stronghold,  was  spectator  of  that  memorable  coronation. 

I  read  the  sacred  story  upon  the  very  spot :  "  They  caused  Solomon 
to  ride  on  King  David's  mule.  And  Zadok,  the  priest,  took  a  horn 
of  oil  out  of  the  tabernacle  and  anointed  Solomon.  And  they  blew 
the  trumpet,  ana  all  the  people  said,  God  save  King  Solomon.  And 
all  the  peop.e  piped  with  pipes,  and  rejoiced  with  great  joy,  so  that 


414  HEZEKIAH'S  POOL. 

the  earth  rent  with  the  sound  of  them"  (1  Kings  i.).  No  wondei 
the  band  of  conspirators  thai  had  assembled  on  the  other  side  of  the 
hill,  by  the  well  En-Rogel,  stood  aghast  at  the  danger  they  had 
incurred,  for  the  people  had  unanimously  accepted  the  choice  of 
Solomon,  and  for  the  rejected  prince  there  was  but  one  escape. 

At  Hezekiah's  Pool  I  was  delighted  to  see  many  hundreds  of  the 
Jerusalem  sparrows,  drinking,  bathing,  and  twittering  to  each  other 
in  their  happiest  strains.  This  was  a  little  world  within  a  world, 
Without,  the  bustling  city  of  many  nations,  intent  upon  cares  of  busi- 
ness, ceremonials  of  religion,  sight-seeing — within,  the  merry  family 
of  birds  congregated  at  their  gathering-place,  all  heedless  of  the  dis- 
traction of  humanity.  Truly  "  the  sparrow  hath  found  a  place,"  "  and 
one  of  them  shall  not  fall  on  the  ground  without  your  Father,"  said 
He  who  knew  all  the  intensity  of  the  Father's  love  (Luke  x.  29).  In 
view  of  this  daily  assemblage  of  birds  here,  this  Pool  better  deserves 
the  name  of  Strnthion  (sparrow)  Pool  than  the  one  now  dry,  north 
of  the  Tower  of  Antonio,  to  which  Josephus  attached  that  name. 
These  sparrows  are  the  same  species  that  were  introduced  a  few  years 
since  from  England  into  New  York,  where  they  have  increased  so  fast 
as  to  be  familiar  to  every  one  who  visits  Union  Park.  Mr.  Beecher 
thinks  their  pleasant  chirp  is  destined  to  go  with  the  English  lan- 
guage around  the  world.  If  it  does,  it  will  increase  the  world's  cheer- 
fulness, and  lessen  the  number  of  the  world's  insects. 

Nor  do  I  think  it  trifling  to  write  here,  that  while  upon  the  house- 
top, adjacent  to  Hezekiah's  Pool,  I  observed  a  little  Jerusalem  girl 
of  five  or  six,  rocking  and  singing  to  her  doll,  with  an  intensity  of 
interest  and  absorption  of  thought  deeply  affecting  to  me. 

From  there  I  went  through  the  Jews'  quarter,  composed  of  streets 
closed  in  by  hovels  abounding  in  disgusting  sights  and  pestilential 
smells.  The  Jews  were  idly  sauntering  about,  their  long  ringlets 
hanging  down  over  their  ears.  Large  handbills  printed  in  Hebrew 
were  posted  up  on  the  walls. 

Next,  by  the  Mograbbins  Gate,  to  the  Pool  of  Siloam.  Seated 
upon  one  of  its  rude  steps,  in  the  southwest  corner,  the  cool  water 
flowing  just  under  my  feet,  I  read  from  John  ix.  the  story  of  the  man 
born  blind,  who  came  here  to  receive  his  sight.  "  Jesus  said  unto 
him,  Go,  wash  in  the  Pool  of  Siloam.  He  went  his  way,  therefore, 
and  washed,  and  came  seeing."  Even  to  the  present  day  there  is 
belief  here  that  the  water  of  Siloam  will  heal  sore  and  inflamed  eyes, 
Mr.  Prime,  in  bis  "Tent-life,'  writes  that  he  "laved  his  eyes  in, 


THE   POOL   OF   SILOAM.  415 

Siloam,  whose  waters  go  softly."  Josephus  often  remarks  that  these 
waters  are  sweet  and  abundant.  But  of  course  all  this  is  as  nothing 
to  the  stupendous  gift  by  which  the  MASTEK,  standing  in  the  Tem- 
ple on  yonder  eminence,  communicated  to  it  the  miraculous  energy 
of  imparting  light  to  one  born  blind.  I,  too,  bathed  my  eyes  here, 
and,  as  I  did  so,  the  soft  and  gentle  stream  perfectly  justified  my 
conception  of  Siloam.  And  here,  too,  in  the  olden  time,  came  the 
Levite,  with  his  golden  pitcher,  on  the  last  and  great  day  of  the 
Feast  of  Tabernacles,  to  fill  it  with  Siloam's  water,  to  be  poured 
over  the  sacrifice  in  commemoration  of  the  miraculous  water-supply 
at  Eephidim.  To  this  golden  pitcher  the  Lord  pointed,  when  He 
cried  in  the  Temple,  "If  any  man  thirst,  let  him  come  unto  me  and 
drink."  It  is  at  Siloam  that  tradition  locates  the  death  of  Zacharias 
(Matthew  xxiii.  35),  and  even  so  late  as  the  fifth  century  after  Christ 
the  stones  here  were  fabled  to  be  red  with  his  blood.  (Riibra  saxa.) 
Our  enthusiastic  countrymen,  Eobinson,  Smith,  ana  Barclay,  entered 
the  channel  of  the  pool,  and  followed  it  under  the  lofty  hill,  through 
a  crooked  and  narrow  rock-hewn  passage,  sometimes  walking,  some- 
times stooping,  sometimes  kneeling,  sometimes  creeping,  about  one 
thousand  seven  hundred  feet  to  the  Virgin's  Fountain,  at  the  upper 
entrance.  Eecently,  Lieutenant  Warren  performed  the  same  feat. 

Around  the  Pool  of  Siloam  I  observed  the  beautiful  maiden's-hair 
fern  that  grows  profusely  here ;  also  the  hyssop  "  that  springeth  out 
of  the  wall "  (1  Kings  iv.  33),  and  others.  The  hyssop,  I  find,  grows 
in  green  tufts  in  every  ancient  wall  in  this  country. 

From  the  Virgin's  Fountain  I  went  through  the  King's  Gardens, 
anciently  so  called,  to  the  Beer  Eyub,  or  Well  Eu-Rogel.  The  King's 
Gardens,  or  "  royal  Paradise,"  as  a  writer  terms  them,  were  probably 
the  ancient  Walley  of  Shaveh  or  the  King's  Dale,  in  which  occurred 
the  affecting  scene  wherein  participated  Melchizedek,  "  King  of  Salem 
and  Priest  of  the  Most  High,"  and  Abraham,  "  the  Father  of  the 
Faithful."  From  yonder  rocky  eminence  of  Zion  on  the  west  came 
the  venerable  Shem,  or  Melchizedek,  with  bread  and  wine.  Here  he 
saluted  the  victorious  hero.  "  Blessed  be  Abram  of  the  Most  High 
God,  possessor  of  heaven  and  earth"  (Genesis  xiv.).  It  is  the  green- 
est and  loveliest  nook  around  the  whole  city,  and  I  could  scarcely 
tear  myself  away  from  the  contemplation  of  it,  in  association  with 
events  so  pathetic;  although  the  women  and  children  from  the 
neighboring  village  of  Sylwan  (Siloam)  had  crowded  around  me,  fill- 
ing the  air  alike  with  clamorous  demands  for  backsheesh  and  an 


416  OETHSEMANE. 

aroma  not  at  all  derived  from  the  sweet  gardens  covering  the  King's 
Dale. 

These  gardens,  I  must  not  neglect  to  write,  are  watered  by  "cool 
Siloam's  shady  rill."  "  The  waters  of  Shiloah  that  go  softly,"  as  the 
prophet  Isaiah  describes  them,  flow  here,  and  make  the  valley  the 
greenest  spot  in  the  vicinity,  reclaimed  from  sterility  into  an  oasis  of 
fig-trees,  olives,  pomegranates,  and  vines  by  means  of  this  tiny  rill, 
which  fertilizes  and  beautifies  all  the  region  through  which  it  passes 
Here,  too,  are  the  kitchen-gardens  which,  with  those  of  Etham,  nea) 
Bethlehem,  supply  Jerusalem  with  its  vegetables. 

I  am  forgetting  a  pleasant  fact  connected  with  the  Pool  of  Siloam ; 
that  is,  the  great  number  of  bees  I  observed  watering  there.  I  had 
noticed  on  the  west  side  of  the  city  a  collection  of  beehives,  long 
earthenware  jars,  piled  horizontally  one  upon  another  to  the  depth 
of  six  or  eight  courses,  upon  the  roof  a  small  out-house,  the  same  style 
of  beehives  observed  all  the  way  from  Joppa ;  and  several  honey  ped- 
dlers already  have  visited  our  tents,  offering  to  supply  us  with  the 
delectable  food  so  often  named  in  the  sacred  narrative.  It  is  the 
experience  of  all  travellers,  as  well  as  our  own,  that  the  honey  of 
Canaan  possesses  a  finer  flavor  than  any  we  have  at  home. 

The  Well  En-Rogel,  or  Beer  Eyub,  is  of  special  interest  in  an  his- 
torical point  of  view.  It  lies  just  below  the  Akeldama,  or  Potter's 
Field,  that  gloomy  investment  of  a  traitor's  ill-gotten  gain.  Such  a 
traitor!  Such  a  treason!  As  I  sat  for  an  hour  in  the  shade  of  the 
buildings  surrounding  Beer  Eyub,  memory  was  faithful  to  recall  the 
story  of  that  dreadful  "  Field  of  Blood  "  that  covers  the  slope  of  the 
rocky  hill  just  above. 

The  inclosure,  termed  by  the  Roman  Catholics  the  Garden  of  Geth- 
semane,  is  a  plot  of  ground  a  little  more  than  half  an  acre  in  area, 
surrounded  by  a  high  stone  wall,  having  but  one  entrance,  and  that 
through  a  low  gate.  As  the  janitor  justly  said,  "  all  must  bow  who 
enter  here."  This  hollow  in  the  hills,  a  half-mile  of  garden-ground, 
is  termed  Jesmoniya  by  the  natives,  and  somewhere  in  it,  no  doubt, 
the  garden  stood.  It  is  quite  likely  that  this  is  the  very  spot.  It  is 
neatly  kept,  and  stocked  with  olives,  cypresses,  and  flowers.  The 
olive-trees  are  eight  in  number,  each  boarded  up  and  protected  from 
the  pilfering  propensities  of  visitors.  Such  noble  and  venerable 
trees !  Rough  in  their  trunks,  so  aged  that  their  cavities  are  built 
up  with  stone  for  strength,  but  fruitful  as  only  such  patriarchal  trees 
can  be.  Each  has  three,  four,  or  five  stems  springing  from  a  single 


A   DEVOTEE.  41? 

root,  and  tnese  roots  the  same,  doubtless,  that  supported  the  trees 
under  whose  shade  Jesus  walked,  turned  aside,  prayed,  knelt,  and 
agonized  his  soul  even  unto  death.  The  thought  is  overwhelming. 
My  mind,  while  here,  was  chiefly  occupied  in  the  thought  that  the 
resurrection  of  Christ  is  the  guarantee  of  the  resurrection  of  all  man- 
kind. A  young  lady  went  past  me  as  I  sat  and  read  of  the  agony, 
the  tears,  and  the  sweat.  She  was  making  the  circuit  of  Gethsemane 
upon  her  knees, — her  costly  garments  already  soiled  and  ragged  by 
her  morning's  work, — sobs  and  tears  shaking  her  whole  frame, — her 
hands  wildly  thrown  above  her  head.  I  had  never  seen  such  a  sight 
before.  It  recalled  the  long  trains  of  Irish  Catholics  that  I  have 
observed  on  snowy  winter  mornings  on  their  knees,  outside  one  of 
their  churches,  each  patiently  waiting  his  turn  to  enter.  It  recalled 
the  poet's  words: 

"  With  knees  of  adoration  wore  the  stone 
A  holy  maid ; " 

though  whether  this  was  religion  or  fanaticism  must  be  left  to  the 
Great  Searcher  of  Hearts  to  say. 


FOUNTAIN,  DAMASCUS. 


CHAPTER   XXIV. 


THE   EXPLORATIONS   OF   JERUSALEM. 

0  much  notice  has  been  taken  through  the  press,  pulpit, 
and  lecture-stand  of  the  work  of  exhuming  the  Sacred 
City,  that  my  readers  will  expect  to  see  a  summary  of  the 
results  accomplished  by  the  London  Palestine  Fund,  which 
has  had  the  lead  in  the  investigation.  There  were  thou- 
sands of  Masons  who  shared  in  the  satisfaction  felt  by  English 


R.    BEARDSLEY, 

U.  S.  Consul  at  Jerusalem,  1872. 


scholars  at  the  formation,  six  years  since,  of  a  society  for  the  accu- 
rate and  systematic  investigation  of  the  Archaeology,  Topography, 
Geology  and  Physical  Geography,  Natural  History  and  Manners  and 


THE   LONDON   PALESTINE   FUND.  419 

Customs  of  the  Holy  Land,  for  biblical  illustration.  The  rather  inex- 
pressive name  of  this  association  is  The  Palestine  Exploration  Fund, 
of  which  the  well-known  biblical  expositor,  George  Grove,  writer  of 
so  many  first-class  articles  in  Smith's  Dictionary  of  the  Bible,  etc., 
is  Secretary.  I  had  some  opportunities,  through  the  eminent  Dr.  J. 
T.  Barclay,  of  our  own  country,  and  Captain  Charles  Warren,  last  in 
charge  of  the  surveys  and  explorations  at  Jerusalem,  to  look  into 
the  management  of  this  society,  and  will  combine  my  notes  into  one 
article.  I  wrote  it  just  before  leaving  Jerusalem,  while  the  dust  of 
my  last  visit  to  the  excavations  made  by  Captain  Warren  was  still 
clinging  to  me,  and  the  voice  of  this  modest  but  thoroughly  educated 
and  indefatigable  man  ringing  in  my  ears.  Some  degree  of  haste, 
therefore,  may  be  observed  in  the  preparation  of  this  article,  but  I 
will  vouch  for  the  accuracy  of  the  statements. 

It  is  superfluous  to  say  to  a  newspaper  reader  in  the  United  States, 
that  John  Bull, plebeian,  can  do  nothing  except  under  the  shadow  of 
the  throne  and  in  the  path  of  the  nobility.  Therefore  it  was  deemed 
a  good  and  happy  thing  to  secure  the  Queen  of  England  as  "  Patron  " 
of  the  Palestine  Exploration  Fund;  and  such  names  as  the  Dukes 
of  Argyle  and  Devonshire,  the  Earls  of  Carnarvon,  Derby,  Russell, 
Zetland  (the  latter  the  then  Grand  Master  of  Masons),  and  Shaftes- 
bury ;  the  Bishops  of  London,  Oxford,  Ely  and  Ripon  ;  the  Deans  of 
St.  Paul's,  Westminster,  Christ's  Church  and  Canterbury,  and  a  host  of 
minor  functionaries,  seventy-eight  in  all,  to  constitute  the  committee. 
I  think  no  such  combination  of  great  lights,  historical  and  scien- 
tific, was  ever  formed  before  in  behalf  of  an  enterprise  purely  histor- 
ical. I  need  only  instance  Dr.  William  Smith,  Sir  Henry  Rawlinson, 
A.  H.  Layard,  Rev.  E.  H.  Plumptre,  Rev.  H.  B.  Tristam,  Rev.  Nor- 
man McLeod,  Cyril  C.  Graham,  John  Murray,  and  many  others  of 
the  very  first  class  of  explorers  in  the  field  of  Oriental  investigation. 

It  is  reasonable  to  expect  that  such  men  set  forth  upon  a  good 
work  in  a  proper  manner.  One  of  the  stanchest  English  societies 
reporting  on  the  subject,  said :  "  We  believe  this  work  to  be  one  of 
the  greatest  pith  and  moment,  and  worthy  of  the  warmest  and  most 
liberal  support.  The  undying  interest  of  the  land  explored,  the 
sound  and  scientific  basis  upon  which  the  explorations  are  conducted 
the  vast  importance  of  the  results  obtained,  and  the  still  greater 
value  of  the  discoveries  which  are  on  the  eve  of  being  made,  com- 
mend this  great  work  to  the  general  sympathy  of  all."  This  was 
the  keynote  of  every  public  expression  referring  to  this  subject. 


420  DUST   AND    ASHES. 

Outside  of   Palestine  all  was  expectation,   and   hopeful   o_   great 
results. 

This  society  gave  its  exertions  for  the  first  two  years  to  surveying, 
exploring,  and  photographing  Capernaum,  Nablous,  Damascus,  and 
other  places ;  settling  disputed  questions  of  latitude  and  longitude, 
of  levels  and  distances,  and  laying  out  a  programme  for  a  thorough 
topographical  survey  of  Palestine.  Latterly,  however,  they  restricted 
their  operations  to  Jerusalem. 

One  peculiarity  concerning  the  present  city  of  Jerusalem,  is  the 
fact  that  it  stands,  as  it  were,  upon  a  heap  of  dust  and  rubbish,  under 
which  is  the  Jerusalem  of  the  Bible.  And  this  singular  position  is 
not  attributable  merely  to  the  fact  that  ancient  Jerusalem  was  seven- 
teen times  captured,  and  more  than  once  leveled  to  the  ground, 
thus  converting  its  splendid  edifices  into  piles  of  dust  and  ruins. 
This,  although  it  goes  very  far  to  explain  the  phenomena,  is  not 
sufficient  altogether  to  account  for  it.  It  is  rather  the  fact  that  the 
stone  of  which  the  houses  and  walks  of  Jerusalem  are  built,  is  very 
friable,  and  exfoliates  rapidly ;  so  rapidly  that  a  few  centuries  are 
sufficient  to  reduce  a  square  block  to  a  shapeless  mass.  This,  of 
course,  produces  pulverized  earth;  the  earth  which  has  buried  fifty, 
seventy-five,  and  even  a  hundred  feet  deep,  the  Jerusalem  of  our 
Saviour's  period.  I  have  upon  the  table  before  me  as  I  write  a  piece 
of  the  so-called  "  Jerusalem  marble,"  taken  from  the  immense  quarry 
(the  Cotton  Megara)  which  underlies  so  much  of  the  northeastern 
quarter  of  the  city,  and  which  has  been  excavated  during  the  last 
three  thousand  years  expressly  for  building  materials.  This  stone, 
as  it  first  comes  from  the  quarry,  is  so  soft  that  it  may  almost  be 
crushed  between  the  fingers.  It  is  but  little  firmer  than  a  well-crys- 
tallized loaf  of  sugar.  True,  it  hardens  upon  exposure,  and  in  time 
becomes  a  fair  material  for  building  purposes ;  but  if  any  one  is  sur- 
prised to  find  the  city  of  Jerusalem  standing  upon  a  pile  of  disinte- 
grated limestone,  fifty  feet  thick,  as  it  surely  does,  he  has  only  to  ex- 
plore that  enormous  quarry,  a  quarter  of  a  mile  deep,  to  discover 
where  the  rubbish  originally  came  from. 

This  explanation  will  enable  the  reader  to  understand  what  is 
meant  by  exploring  Jerusalem.  It  is  simply  to  go  to  the  bottom  of 
that  enormous  mound  of  dust  and  ashes,  and  let  in  the  light  upon 
streets  and  foundations  upon  which  it  shone  two  thousand  years  age 
In  this  respect  there  is  a  most  exact  analogy  between  the  exploratioi 
o  ('Jerusalem  and  of  Pompeii.  Over  the  latter  city,  the  superincum- 


THE   GREAT   CAUSEWAY.  421 

bent  mass  is  scoriae,  lava,  and  volcanic  ashes ;  in  the  former,  the 
accumulations  are  of  pulverized  limestone,  added  of  course  to  the 
garbage  of  the  city,  shreds  of  pottery,  bones,  etc.,  etc.,  the  accumula- 
tions of  that  extended  period.  It  is  no  romance  to  say  that  the  pres- 
ent Jerusalem  overlies  many  Jerusalems  that  have  gone  to  dust,  in 
the  centuries  since  the  Jebusites  established  their  citadel  upon  Mount 
Zion,  before  the  time  of  Abraham ;  and  that  the  explorer's  spade 
must  pass  these  graves  of  cities  one  by  one,  to  find  the  remnants 
which  he  seeks.  These  remarks  are  likewise  applicable  to  the  old 
sites  of  Tyre,  Sidon,  Gebal,  etc. 

With  these  explanatory  remarks  we  can  see  what  Captain  Warren, 
in  charge  of  the  works  undertaken  by  the  Palestine  Exploration 
Fund,  undertook.  The  historians  of  the  Temple  of  Herod  (the  only 
temple  with  which  the  Christian  or  Jew  is  particularly  interested) 
'  go  much  into  detail  relative  to  "  the  Courts  of  the  Temple,"  "  the 
Beautiful  Gate,"  "the  vast  Causeway "  connecting  Mount  Moriah 
with  Mount  Zion,  and  many  other  things.  In  describing  the  walls 
built  up  by  Solomon,  and  renewed  by  Herod,  to  enlarge  the  area  upon 
which  the  Temple  was  built,  Josephus  speaks  of  their  height  as 
bewildering,  and  the  blocks  that  entered  into  their  construction  as 
enormously  great.  Now  to  verify  such  details  as  these  was  the  aim 
of  Captain  Warren's  party,  and  their  labors  were  productive  of  much 
that  corroborates  the  testimony  of  Josephus,  and  of  Scriptural  writ- 
ers. He  found  the  great  Causeway,  or  Stone  Bridge,  that  once 
connected  the  Mount  Moriah  with  Zion,  lying  where  it  was  cast, 
probably,  at  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  by  Titus,  but  lying  under 
fifty  feet  of  earth.  Each  of  the  stone  blocks  that  composed  it  bears 
a  proper  relation  to  adjacent  rocks,  to  show  that  they  once  formed  a 
whole  that  was  the  admiration  of  all  beholders.  He  found  the  whole 
area  representing  Mount  Moriah  to  be  banked  in  with  mounds  of 
earth,  to  the  enormous  depth,  at  one  corner,  of  one  hundred  feet ; 
the  great  wall  extending  to  that  enormous  depth  before  its  foundation, 
the  native  rock,  is  exposed  to  view.  He  found  near  the  southeast  corner 
of  this  great  Temple  area  (Mount  Moriah)  a  series  of  arches  and 
abutments  supporting  the  solid  structures  on  which  the  pavement 
of  the  area  at  that  corner  rests.  He  found  evidences  of  immense 
works  built  far  beneath  the  present  surface,  for  the  supply  of  ancient 
Jerusalem  with  water.  And  yet  these  discoveries  are  but  just  begun. 
While  no  one  will  venture  to  name  the  result  that  may  be  achieved 
by  explorers,  surely  no  one  can  place  any  bounds  to  them. 


422  SANITARY   CONDITION. 

There  is  one  thought  that  grows  out  of  this  subject,  that  may  be 
of  use  to  those  who  are  just  beginning  to  study  the  topography  of 
Jerusalem.  It  is,  that  all  those  so-called  traditional  places  connected 
with  the  Via  Dolorosa  must  necessarily  be  fabulous,  because  the  Via 
Dolorosa  of  our  Saviour's  time — that  is,  the  road  or  street  along  which 
he  passed,  in  his  sad  journey  from  Pilate's  house  to  Golgotha — lies 
many  score  feet  (part  of  it  fifty  or  seventy-five  feet)  below  the  present 
surface.  The  ground  upon  which  Christ  trod  lies  so  far  beneath 
the  present  ground,  that  to  go  to  the  bottom  of  the  excavation  made 
to  show  the  former  pathway,  makes  even  a  clear  head  swim.  The 
person  walking  along  "Water-street,  New  York,  cannot  say  that  he  if? 
walking  where  the  fish  once  swam ;  he  is  walking  fifty  or  one  hun- 
dred feet  above  their  former  haunts.  And  so  it  is  with  the  Via 
Dolorosa. 

Among  the  subjects  that  will,  in  due  time,  demand  the  attention 
of  explorers  in  the  vicinity  of  Jerusalem,  is  the  search  for  ancient 
tombs  among  the  surrounding  hills.  No  sensible  person  can  for  a 
moment  suppose  that  the  few  rock  tombs  already  opened  (amongst 
which  "the  tomb  of  Kings,"  "the  tomb  of  Prophets,"  and  "the 
tomb  of  the  Virgin  Mary"  are  the  chief),  represent  more  than  a  small 
part  of  the  tombs  with  which  those  hills  were  formerly  honeycombed. 
Great  discoveries  in  that  direction  await  the  zealous  excavator ;  discov- 
eries more  important  perhaps  in  a  historical  point  of  view,  if  not  so  bril- 
liant, as  those  which  Egyptian  soil  has  yielded.  Too  much  cannot  be 
projected  concerning  this  "city  of  hallowed  memories  and  entranc- 
ing recollections.  Its  very  name  is  music  and  magic;  the  theatre  of 
the  most  memorable  and  stupendous  events ;  a  place  of  hallowed 
associations,  endearing  reminiscences,  and  glorious  contemplations." 

So  much  under  this  head  was  written  just  as  I  was  leaving  Jeru- 
salem, May.  1868.  I  continue  the  subject,  aided  by  much  subsequent 
correspondence  with  Oriental  friends,  and  the  publication  of  works 
by  other  writers  upon  the  subject.  The  following  is  a  succinct  history 
of  the  society  that  has  pursued  these  explorations. 

Early  in  the  year  1864,  the  sanitary  state  of  Jerusalem  attracted 
considerable  attention  ;  that  city — which  the  Psalmist  had  described 
as  beautiful  for  situation,  the  joy  of  the  whole  earth — had  become 
one  of  the  most  unhealthy  places  in  the  world ;  and  the  chief  rea- 
sons assigned  for  this  melancholy  change  were  the  inferior  quality  of 
the  water,  and  the  presence  of  an  enormous  mass  of  rubbish  which 
had  been  accumulating  for  centuries.  With  the  rubbish  it  was  hardly 


THE  "  MANNER   OF  STONES."  423 

possible  to  deal,  but  the  water-supply  seemed  an  easier  matter,  and 
several  schemes  were  proposed  for  improving  it,  either  by  repairing 
the  ancient  system,  or  by  making  new  pools,  cisterns,  and  aqueducts. 
Before,  however,  any  scheme  could  be  carried  out,  it  was  necessary 
to  obtain  an  accurate  plan  of  the  city ;  and  with  this  view,  Miss 
Burdett  Coutts,  a  lady  ever  ready  to  promote  good  works,  placed  a 
sum  of  £500  in  the  hands  of  a  committee  of  gentlemen  interested  in 
Jerusalem.  The  committee  requested  Lord  de  Grey,  then  Secretary 
of  State  for  War,  to  allow  a  survey  to  be  made  by  a  party  of  Koyal 
Engineers  from  the  Ordnance  Survey,  under  the  direction  of  Sir 
Henry  James,  and  obtained  a  favorable  answer. 

Captain  Wilson,  R.  E.,  was  in  command  of  this  party,  and  per- 
formed with  thoroughness  and  skill  the  particular  task  assigned  to 
him.  The  opposition  of  the  Turkish  authorities  frustrated  his  plan 
for  improving  the  water-supply  of  Jerusalem  ;  but  the  discoveries  of 
ancient  ruins  which  he  incidentally  made  while  tracing  out  the  aque- 
ducts and  cisterns  of  the  times  of  Solomon  and  Hezekiah,  awakened 
new  zeal  for  the  exploration  of  the  old  city,  with  a  view  to  the  settle- 
ment of  disputed  points  of  topography.  Accordingly  a  society  was 
formed  in  England,  under  the  name  of  "  The  Palestine  Exploration 
Fund,  for  the  accurate  and  systematic  investigation  of  the  Archae- 
ology, Topography,  Geology  and  Physical  Geography,  Natural  His- 
tory, Manners,  and  Customs  of  the  Holy  Land,  for  Biblical  Illustra- 
tion." In  1867,  a  party  was  sent  out,  under  command  of  Captain 
Warren,  R.  E.,  which  remained  in  Palestine  for  three  years,  chiefly 
occupied  in  and  around  Jerusalem.  The  reports  and  journals  of 
Captain  Warren,  and  other  matters  relating  to  the  expedition,  were 
published  in  a  series  of  Quarterly  Statements,  which  are  of  great 
interest  and  value ;  and  the  general  results  of  the  three  years  have 
been  embodied  in  an  illustrated  volume,  called  "  The  Recovery  of 
Jerusalem." 

How  far  progress  has  been  made,  and  what  is  yet  contemplated, 
may  be  gathered  from  the  following  accounts : 

"  Master,  see !  what  manner  of  stones  and  what  buildings  are  here !" 
Surely  it  is  not  unworthy  of  Christian  study  to  find  out,  if  it  be  still 
possible,  what  those  stones  and  buildings  were.  We  are  able  to  do  it 
to  a  greater  degree  than  has  been  supposed,  as  the  discoveries  of  the 
"  Palestine  Exploration  Fund  "  show.  These  discoveries  have  been 
made  at  great  cost  of  money  and  labor,  and  no  little  danger,  by 
sinking  shafts  a  hundred  feet  deep,  and  running  galleries  at  right 


424  MORIAH   AS    IT   WAS. 

angles  to  these  shafts,  the  explorers  feeling  their  way  under  ground, 
burning  magnesian  wire,  and  so  throwing  light  upon  stones  and 
pavements  which  have  been  buried  2,000  and  3,000  years  from  human 
sight.  The  results  have  been  invaluable,  because  the  least  informa- 
tion upon  such  subjects  is  precious.  Of  these  results  we  will  men.- 
tion  some  of  the  more  prominent. 

Let  it  be  borne  in  mind  at  the  outset  that  no  city  in  the  world  has 
presented  so  difficult  a  problem  as  Jerusalem.  The  reason  is,  no  city 
has  been  so  often  and  so  thoroughly  destroyed.  It  has  been  captured, 
burned,  overthrown,  more  than  twenty  times.  Xames  and  memories 
have  perished,  so  that  scarcely  a  feature  of  the  natural  landscape  has 
been  recognized  beyond  dispute.  Mount  Moriah  within  the  walls,  and 
the  Mount  of  Olives  outside,  we  are  sure  of.  We  thought  we  had  certain 
knowledge  of  Mount  Zion  also,  but  the  most  recent  and  successful  ex- 
plorers have  cast  doubt  even  on  this,  and  deny  that  the  modern 
"  Zion  "  corresponds  with  the  ancient. 

Mount  Moriah  has  been  found  to  be  origiiially  a  sharp  crag  or 
ridge,  with  so  little  space  on  the  top  as  scarcely  to  afford  room  for  a 
temple  of  small  dimensions.  On  all  sides  it  fell  off  rapidly  and  very 
steeply,  except  from  northwest  to  southeast,  the  direction  in  which 
the  ridge  ran.  The  area  on  the  summit  was  enlarged  by  walls  built 
along  the  declivities,  the  outside  wall  deep  down  the  valleys,  from 
100  to  150  feet  below  the  area  on  which  the  Temple  buildings  stood. 
One  hundred  feet  again  below  this  lay  the  original  bed  of  the  brook 
Kedron.  The  foundations  of  the  Temple,  therefore,  were  250  feet 
above  the  deep  defiles  around.  This  area,  originally  built  by  Solomon 
and  enlarged  by  Herod,  still  exists,  running  on  the  south  along  the 
valley  of  Hinnom  1,000  feet,  and  along  the  Kedron  1,500. 

This  inclosure  was  originally  covered  with  splendid  edifices.  First 
were  the  porticoes,  or  covered  walks,  built  along  the  outer  walls,  and 
overlooking  the  Kedron  and  Hinnom.  They  were  magnificent  struc- 
tures, resembling  the  nave  and  aisles  of  Gothic  cathedrals.  The  mid- 
dle walk,  or  nave,  was  45  feet  broad,  and  the  two  aisles  30  feet.  The 
aisles  were  50  feet  high,  and  the  nave,  rising  like  a  clear-story  be- 
tween the  two,  was  more  than  100  feet  high.  Add  now  terrace- walls 
to  the  height  of  the  porticoes,  and  we  have  a  solid  and  continuous 
wall  of  masonry  250  feet  high.  But  these  were  only  the  outer  build- 
ings of  the  Temple  area.  The  porticoes  opened  inwardly  upon  a 
court  paved  with  marble,  and  open  to  the  sky.  Steps  led  up 'to 
a  second  court.  Beyond  this,  again,  through  beautiful  gateways, 


THE  TKIPLE  TEMPLE.  425 

was  a  third,  and  rising  above  them  all  was  a  fourth,  in  which  stood 
the  Temple  proper,  ascending  story  above  story,  and  said  to  have 
been  100  or  even  150  feet  high. 

These  horizontal  measurements  have  been  verified.  Of  course,  we 
cannot  vouch  for  the  correctness  of  the  reputed  height  of  these  im- 
mense structures.  We  have  the  less  reason,  however,  to  doubt  the- 
last,  as  we  have  established  the  first.  If  one  looked  upon  Mount 
Moriah  from  the  Mount  of  Olives  opposite,  coming  round  the  brow 
of  Olivet  on  the  way  from  Bethany,  as  our  Lord  did  when  beholding 
the  city,  it  must  have  been  a  sight  which,  for  architectural  beauty 
and  grandeur,  perhaps,  has  never  been  equalled,  certainly  not  sur- 
passed. It  was  an  artificial  mountain  from  the  deep  ravines  below, 
wall,  column,  roof,  pinnacle,  culminating  in  the  Temple  within  and 
above  all,  and  probably  measuring  between  500  and  600  feet. 

The  palace  of  Solomon,  too,  added  to  the  impressiveness  of  the 
sight.  It  is  settled  by  recent  discoveries  that  this  pile  of  buildings 
was  on  the  southeast  corner  of  the  area,  joining  on  the  House  of  the 
Lord  above,  and  extending  below  to  the  King's  Gardens,  where  the 
two  valleys  met  and  "  the  waters  of  Siloah  go  softly." 

James  Fergusson,  Esq.,  the  distinguished  architect,  writes :  "  The 
triple  Temple  of  Jerusalem,  the  lower  court  standing  on  its  magnifi- 
cent terraces,  the  inner  court  raised  on  its  platform  in  the  centre, 
and  the  temple  itself  rising  out  of  the  group  and  crowning  the  whole, 
must  have  formed,  when  combined  with  the  beauty  of  the  situation, 
one  of  the  most  splendid  architectural  combinations  of  the  ancient 
world." 

Josephus  wrote :  "  If  any  one  looked  down  from  the  top  of  the 
battlements  he  would  be  giddy,  while  his  sight  could  not  reach  to 
such  an  immense  depth."  This  passed  for  foolish  exaggeration  till 
recent  explorations  vindicated  the  statement. 

All  these  buildings,  porticoes,  columns,  pinnacles,  altar,  and  Temple 
have  perished.  "  Not  one  stone  remains  upon  another  which  has  not 
been  thrown  down."  The  area  alone  remains,  and  the  massive  sub- 
structures that  for  3,000  years  have  been  sleeping  in  their  courses. 
The  preservation  has  been  due  to  the  ruin.  Buildings  so  vast  have 
been  toppled  down  the  slopes  of  the  Moriah,  that  the  original  defiles 
and  valleys  have  been  almost  obliterated.  What  has  been  regarded 
as  the  original  surface  has  been  found  to  be  debris  from  70  to  90  feet 
deep. 

With  pickaxe  and  shovel  British  explorers  have  been  down  to  the 


4-_'i;  ACCUMULATED   UEBKI6. 

original  foundations.  Fallen  columns  have  been  met  with,  and 
avoided,  or  a  way  blasted  through  them.  The  cinders  of  burnt  Jeru- 
salem have  been  cut  through,  and  turned  up  to  the  light — rich 
moulds  deposited  by  the  treasures  of  Jewish  pride.  The  seal  of 
Haggai,  in  ancient  Hebrew  characters,  was  picked  up  out  of  the  sift- 
.ings  of  this  deposit.  The  first  courses  of  stones  deposited  by  Phoe- 
nician builders  have  been  reached,  lying  on  the  living  rock.  Quarry- 
marks,  put  on  in  vermilion,  have  been  copied — known  to  be  quarry- 
marks  by  the  trickling  drops  of  paint,  still  visible — only  they  are 
above  the  letters,  showing  that  when  they  were  written  the  stones 
lay  with  the  underside  uppermost 

In  the  southwest  corner  of  the  area,  debris  has  accumulated  to  a 
depth  of  not  less  than  125  feet — the  accumulation  of  ages,  made  up 
of  the  ruins  of  successive  Jerusalems ;  and  here  some  of  the  most 
interesting  discoveries  have  been  made.  Here  is  the  famous  Arch 
of  Kobinson,  shown  now  to  be  an  arch,  as  he  conjectured,  by  the  dis- 
covery of  the  pier  upon  which  the  first  span  rested.  It  is  the  remains 
of  a  bridge  which  crossed  the  valley  on  arches,  and  connected  Mount 
Moriah  with  the  mountain  opposite — the  modern  Zion.  It  is  the 
skewback,  or  abutment  that  slopes  to  receive  the  end  of  the  arch. 
Three  courses  remain.  The  stones  are  5  or  6  feet  thick,  and  20  or  25 
feet  long.  The  valley  here  is  350  feet  wide,  and  this  must  have  been 
the  length  of  the  bridge,  connecting  the  Temple  with  the  Royal 
Palace  on  the  other  side.  At  a  depth  of  30  feet  a  worn  pavement 
was  found,  worn  by  feet  that  passed  over  it  in  our  Lord's  time. 
Lying  on  this  pavement  were  the  voussoirs,  or  wedge-like  stones,  be- 
longing to  the  arch.  Breaking  through  this  pavement,  and  through 
24  feet  of  debris  beneath,  they  found  a  still  more  ancient  roadway, 
and  resting  upon  this,  the  keystones  of  a  still  more  ancient  bridge. 

The  explanation  is  probably  reached :  Robinson's  Arch  is  the  re- 
mains of  the  bridge  that  was  standing  at  the  siege  of  Jerusalem,  upon 
which,  at  the  eastern  end  of  it,  stood  the  Roman  General  Titus, 
holding  a  parley  with  the  Jews,  occupying  the  other  end  of  the 
bridge.  The  older  bridge,  the  remains  of  which  were  found  beneath 
the  pavement,  belonged  to  the  palmy  days  of  Solomon ;  may  have 
been  standing  at  the  time  of  the  Queen  of  Sheba's  visit;  and  possibly 
was  part  of  the  "ascent"  by  which  Solomon  went  up  into  the 
House  of  the  Lord,  which  when  the  queen  saw,  there  was  "  no  more 
spirit  left  in  her." 

The  whole  of  Mount  Moriah  has  been  found  to  be  fairly  honey- 


DE.   KOBINSOtf.  427 

combed  with  cisterns  and  passages.  One  of  the  cisterns,  known  as 
the  Great  Sea,  would  contain  two  millions  of  gallons,  and  all  together 
not  less  than  ten  millions.  The  wall  of  Ophel  has  been  exposed — 
at  the  present  time  70  feet  high — though  buried  in  d$bris  ;  and  the 
remains  of  towers  and  houses  have  been  lighted  upon,  belonging  to 
the  age  of  the  kings  of  Judah.  The  Pool  of  Bethesda  has  been,  in 
all  probability,  identified ;  an  intermitting  fountain,  which  explains 
the  popular  legend  of  the  troubling  of  the  water  by  an  angel. 

The  first  impulse  toward  the  exploration  of  Palestine,  in  recent 
times,  was  given  by  Dr.  Edward  Eobinson  in  1838,  who  went  through 
not  as  a  mere  traveller  making  notes  of  passing  observations,  but  as 
a  student  of  Biblical  History  and  Antiquities  making  researches 
upon  a  well-defined  method,  with  the  scientific  motive  of  preparing 
a  work  on  Biblical  Geography.  He  had  fitted  himself  for  the  jour- 
ney by  the  special  studies  of  fifteen  years,  had  mastered  the  whole 
literature  of  his  subject,  and  had  mapped  out  distinctly  the  points 
of  inquiry  which  previous  travellers  had  left  undetermined.  But  he 
had  also  qualifications  for  his  task  such  as  are  seldom  combined  in  any 
one  man — a  discriminating  judgment,  a  retentive  memory,  compre- 
hensive and  well-digested  knowledge,  accurate  powers  of  observation, 
the  habit  of  patient  and  cautious  investigation,  and  a  rare  faculty 
of  common  sense  in  sifting  facts  and  weighing  evidence.  The 
most  eminent  geographers  of  Europe  at  once  recognized  the  great 
value  of  Dr.  Robinson's  researches  in  a  geographical  point  of  view ; 
but  controversy  was  awakened  by  his  opinion  touching  the  Church 
of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  and  other  places  of  reputed  sanctity,  and  by 
his  broad  canon  of  historical  research — "that  all  ecclesiastical  tradi- 
tion respecting  the  sacred  places  in  and  around  Jerusalem  and 
throughout  Palestine  is  of  no  value,  except  so  far  as  it  is  supported 
by  circumstances  known  to  us  from  the  Scriptures,  or  from  other 
contemporary  history."  Next  to  the  testimony  of  the  Scriptures  and 
of  Josephus,  Dr.  Robinson  gave  importance  to  the  preservation  of 
the  ancient  names  of  places  among  the  common  people.  In  this 
branch  of  inquiry  he  had  the  invaluable  aid  of  Dr.  Eli  Smith,  a  mas- 
ter of  the  language  and  the  character  of  the  Arabs,  and  an  acute  and 
careful  observer. 

But  Dr.  Robinson  was  not  equipped  for  a  thoroughly  scientific  explo- 
ration of  the  Holy  Land.  He  went  at  his  own  charges,  having  but 
a  single  companion,  with  few  instruments,  and  no  trained  assistant 
for  a  proper  survey.  He  opened  the  way  to  a  scientific  exploration, 


428  THE   WORK   ALBEADY   DONE, 

provided  sound  instructions  and  positive  data  for  others ;  but  he  him- 
self reported  that  "  there  yet  remained  much  land  to  be  possessed." 

In  1848,  Lieutenant  Lynch  and  his  party  made  a  scientific  exami- 
nation of  the  Dead  Sea,  so  careful,  thorough,  and  complete,  that  the 
official  report  of  the  United  States  Expedition  under  his  command 
has  become  the  standard  authority  upon  that  anomalous  feature  of 
Palestine. 

The  publication  of  "  The  Land  and  the  Book,"  by  Dr.  W.  M.  Thom- 
son, in  1859,  while  it  added  much  to  our  knowledge  of  biblical  local- 
ities in  Palestine,  popularized  the  illustration  of  the  Bible  from  the 
natural  scenery  and  history  of  the  Holy  Land,  and  from  the  manners 
and  customs  of  its  inhabitants. 

Dr.  Barclay's  "  City  of  the  Great  King,"  published  in  1858,  made 
some  substantial  additions  to  our  knowledge  of  the  topography  of 
Jerusalem;  Mr.  Osborn's  "Palestine,  Past  and  Present,"  1859,  was  a 
contribution  to  the  natural  history  and  the  cartography  of  the  Holy 
Land ;  Professor  Hackett's  "  Illustrations  of  Scripture,"  published 
in  1860,  gave  a  life-like  tone  to  many  passages  of  the  word  of  God 
from  the  natural  phenomena  and  the  social  customs  of  Palestine ; 
and  other  Americans,  travellers  and  missionaries,  have  enriched  our 
literature  with  journals,  reports,  and  monographs,  upon  the  same 
fruitful  theme. 

Of  photographs,  the  society  has  published  349,  many  of  them  being 
of  places  never  before  taken.  They  include  views  of  the  ruins  of 
Tel  Hum  (Capernaum),  Kerazeh  (Chorazin),  Jerash  (Gerasa).  Kedes 
(Kedesh),  and  Sebastiyeh  (Samaria) ;  many  points  in  and  around 
Jerusalem,  Hebron.  Damascus,  etc. ;  the  district  of  Nablus,  Genne- 
sareth,  etc. ;  and  the  cities  east  of  Jordan. 

From  the  various  reports  made  to  the  Home  Office,  and  addresses 
delivered  at  the  London  meetings  in  encouragement  of  the  move- 
ment, I  make  extracts  at  the  risk  of  some  repetition.  Dr.  Porter, 
author  of  "Giant  Cities  of  Bashan,"  and  other  works,  said  of  the 
enormous  substructure  of  the  Temple,  that  it  is  doubtless  to  these  sub- 
structions the  sacred  writer  refers,  when  he  says,  "  And  the  founda- 
tions were  of  costly  stones,  even  of  great  stones,  stones  of  ten  cubits, 
and  stones  of  eight  cubits."  On  the  southwest  and  southeast  the 
foundations  of  colossal  walls  were  laid  nearly  at  the  bottom  of  the 
Tyropoean  and  Kedron.  Josephus'  account  of  it  is  almost  startling. 
They  surrounded  Moriah,  from  the  base,  with  a  triple  wall,  and 
accomplished  a  work  which  surpassed  all  conception.  The  sustain- 


THE   SOUTHEAST   COKNER.  429 

ing  wall  of  the  lower  court  was  built  up  from  a  depth  of  300  cubits 
(450  feet),  and  in  some  places  more.  There  were  stones  used  in  thia 
building  which  measured  forty  cubits.  Perhaps  some  may  be  inclined 
to  smile  incredulously  on  hearing  such  measurements  as  these  :  if  so, 
just  wait  a  little  till  I  describe  the  wonderful  discoveries  made  by 
recent  excavations. 

We  go  first  to  the  southeast  angle.  Here  is  a  magnificent  fragment' 
of  the  Temple,  and  one  of  the  finest  specimens  of  mural  architecture 
in  the  world.  The  stones  are  colossal,  ranging  from  ten  feet  tc 
thirty  feet  in  length,  by  five  feet  in  height — all  noble  "corner- 
stones," polished  after  the  similitude  of  a  palace.  The  elevation  of 
the  wall  above  the  present  surface  is  seventy-three  feet.  The  Royal 
Engineers  sank  a  shaft  to  the  foundation,  which  they  discovered  at 
the  depth  of  sixty  feet.  This  angle  must,  when  perfect,  have  been 
140  feet  high.  And  this  is  not  all.  It  stands  on  the  rocky  side  of 
Moriah,  which  sinks,  almost  perpendicularly,  200  feet  to  the  bottom 
of  the  Kedron.  And,  besides,  on  the  top  of  the  wall  stood  the  royal 
porch,  100  feet  in  height.  Consequently  the  summit  of  the  porch 
was  240  feet  above  the  foundation  of  the  wall,  and  440  feet  above  the 
Kedron  !  This  was  that  "  Pinnacle  of  the  Temple  "  which  was  the 
scene  of  one  part  of  our  Lord's  Temptation.  We  now  go  over  to 
inspect  the  still  more  extraordinary  discoveries  at  the  southwest 
angle.  We  pass  on  our  way  two  ancient  gates,  which  opened  from 
the  low  suburb  of  Ophel,  where  the  priests  dwelt,  two  long  subter- 
ranean avenues  leading  up  to  the  Temple.  The  masonry  of  the 
southwest  angle  is  even  finer  than  that  of  the  southeast.  At  present 
the  angle  rises  ninety  feet  above  the  ground.  Captain  Warren,  with 
great  labor  and  at  no  little  risk,  sank  a  shaft,  and  discovered  the 
foundation  laid  upon  the  rock,  at  the  enormous  depth  of  100  feet. 
The  grandeur  of  this  angle  almost  surpasses  conception.  The  corner- 
stones are  colossal,  measuring  from  twenty  to  forty  feet  in  length, 
by  about  six  feet  in  height.  One  stone,  which  I  myself  measured, 
and  which  is  placed  110  feet  above  the  foundation,  is  thirty-four  feet 
long,  and  weighs  about  100  tons !  I  believe  that  I  may  say  to  raise  a 
stone  of  such  dimensions  to  such  a  position  would  try  the  skill  of 
modern  engineers.  It  was  near  this  angle  the  bridge  stood  which 
spanned  the  Tyropoeon,  connecting  the  Temple  with  the  palace.  The 
remains  have  been  discovered. 

The  following  measurements  will  give  some  idea  of  its  stupendous 
size  and  grandeur  :  The  spring-stones  of  one  of  its  arches  are  twenty- 


430  HIDDEN    FOR  CENTURIES. 

four  feet  long  by  six  feet  thick.  The  breadth  of  the  roadwav  was 
fifty  feet,  corresponding  exactly  to  the  central  avenue  of  the  Royal 
Porch.  The  span  of  each  arch  was  forty-six  feet.  The  height  above 
the  bottom  of  the  Tyropoeon  was  225  feet.  This  stupendous  bridge 
would  bear  favorable  comparison  with  some  of  the  noblest  works  of 
the  present  century.  Can  we  wonder  that,  when  the  Queen  of  Sheba 
saw  it,  "  there  was  no  more  spirit  left  in  her  "  ? 

At  a  meeting  held  under  the  presidency  of  the  Archbishop  of  York 
in  support  of  the  Palestine  Exploration  Fund,  which  has  for  its  pur- 
pose the  accurate  and  systematic  investigation  of  the  archaeology, 
topography,  geology,  and  physical  geography  of  the  Holy  Land,  the 
Secretary  stated  that  the  committee  had  confined  their  attention 
mainly  to  explorations  in  or  near  the  city  of  Jerusalem.  In  spite  of 
many  difficulties,  Lieut  and  Bro.  Warren  had  succeeded  in  carrying 
on  extensive  excavations,  with  little  interruption,  and  had  made  dis- 
coveries of  the  utmost  importance,  which  not  only  tended  to  throw 
new  light  upon  the  original  features  of  the  Temple  Hill,  but  led  to 
the  hope  that  before  long  sufficient  data  would  be  obtained  for  form- 
ing a  tolerably  accurate  opinion  upon  the  various  sites  in  the  Holy 
City  which  had  been  so  long  matters  of  dispute.  For  the  first  time, 
the  actual  streets  of  the  ancient  city  have  been  reached,  underground 
passages  which  have  been  hidden  for  centuries  by  the  mass  of  super- 
incumbent ruins  have  been  brought  to  light,  and  by  degrees  a  com- 
plicated network  of  drains  and  reservoirs  is  being  laid  bare,  which, 
when  fully  explored,  will  no  doubt  aid  very  considerably  in  settling 
many  difficult  points  connected  with  the  level  of  different  portions 
of  Jerusalem.  In  the  valleys  of  the  Kedron  and  Tyropoeon,  by  a 
succession  of  shafts,  many  of  them  sunk  to  enormous  depths,  dis- 
coveries of  intense  interest  have  been  made,  with  regard  to  the  origi- 
nal course  and  character  of  those  valleys.  The  limits  of  the  hill  and 
position  of  the  wall  of  Ophel  have  been  in  a  great  measure  ascer- 
tained, and  shafts  sunk  on  the  south  of  the  wall  of  the  Haram  area 
have  shown  that  the  account  given  by  Josephus,  of  the  giddy  height 
of  the  battlements  of  the  ancient  city  at  this  point,  is  not,  after  all, 
the  gross  exaggeration  that  up  to  this  time  it  has  always  been  believed 
to  have  been.  The  report  went  on  to  speak  of  the  difficulties  to  be 
met  with  in  carrying  out  such  an  exploration  as  this  among  a  popu- 
lation like  that  of  Jerusalem,  difficulties  which  had  been  increased 
by  the  treacherous  character  of  the  soil  and  the  imperfect  nature  of 
the  apparatus  which  had  to  be  employed.  The  zeal  and  perseverance- 


BROTHER  WARREN'S  REPORT.  431 

of  Lieut.  Warren  in  overcoming  these  difficulties,  were  warmly  com- 
mended ;  through  his  ability  the  field  for  excavation  at  Jerusalem 
had  never  appeared  so  open,  while,  at  the  same  time,  the  discoveries 
of  last  year  gave  the  surest  promise  of  future  excavations  being 
attended  with  still  more  interesting  results ;  and  if,  as  Lieut.  Warren 
hoped,  we  should  be  able  to  dig  in  the  Haram  area  itself,  it  was 
impossible  to  overrate  the  interest  of  the  discoveries  that  were  in 
store.  The  researches  of  Jerusalem  had  caused  other  operations  to  be 
suspended,  but  several  surveying  expeditions  had  been  made,  and 
Lieut.  Warren  had  thoroughly  surveyed  the  Philistine  Plain  as  far 
north  as  Gaza,  together  with  a  large  tract  of  country  to  the  south- 
west of  Jerusalem.  He  had  also  surveyed  portions  of  the  Jordan  and 
its  valleys.  The  report,  after  stating  other  general  facts  as  to  the 
operations  carried  on  by  Lieut.  Warren,  went  on  to  say  that  the  work 
had  been  supported  by  subscriptions  from  many  classes,  and,  among 
others,  by  the  large  and  influential  body  of  Freemasons,  who  had 
encouraged  the  attempts  being  made  to  search  out  the  sites  of  the 
works  erected  by  the  famous  operative  craftsmen  of  that  ancient 
order. 

Lieut.  Warren  was  then  called  upon  to  speak,  and  on  rising  to  do 
so,  he  was  cordially  cheered.  He  proceeded  to  read  a  very  interest- 
ing report  of  considerable  length,  and  he  explained  the  works  being 
carried  out  by  means  of  a  small  map  of  Jerusalem,  of  which  every 
visitor  had  a  copy.  He  said  there  were  at  present  engaged  on  the 
works,  two  corporals  of  engineers,  and  about  seventy  Mussulmans 
of  different  races,  and  though  the  latter  required  great  supervision, 
yet,  what  with  the  jealousies  of  race  and  religion,  the  dragoman 
being  Greek,  and  the  overseers  Jews,  anything  going  wrong  soon 
"cropped  out."  Very  few  articles  found  in  the  works  had  come  to 
hand,  and  what  had  been  found  consisted  mostly  of  pottery,  bronze 
nails,  and  glass  (the  former  of  many  different  dates,  and  the  glass  of  the 
third  and  fourth  centuries  of  the  Christian  era) ;  but  a  few  Hebrew 
coins  had  been  turned  up.  Among  the  findings  was  a  seal  with 
characters  showing  it  to  be  that  of  "  Haggai,  the  son  of  Shebaniah," 
and  it  was  supposed  in  Jerusalem  to  be  of  the  time  of  Ezra.  How- 
ever, the  main  object  of  the  work  was  with  regard  to  nether  Jerusa- 
lem in  its  topography,  and  it  was  desired  particularly  to  find  ont 
where  the  Temple  stood.  In  studying  the  Holy  Land  it  was  most 
disappointing  to  find  a  dearth  of  evidence  as  to  sites  of  places,  and 
the  more  the  matter  was  looked  into,  the  more  difficult  it  became- 


432  THE    INEXHAUSTIBLE   TANK. 

There  were  points  which  were  known  beyond  contradiction,  such  as 
Jaffa,  Jerusalem,  and  others;  but  when  details  were  sought,  there 
was  the  most  conflicting  evidence. 

All  parties  agree  that  the  Temple  stood  somewhere  in  a  rectangu- 
lar spot,  called  by  the  names  of  Haram  and  Moriah,  and  that  the 
Mount  of  Olives  was  on  the  whole  or  part  of  a  hill  indicated  on  the 
map.  It  was  probable,  too,  that  the  valley  of  the  Kedron  could  be 
traced ;  but  about  all  other  points  there  were  controversies ;  and  if 
he  made  use  of  Biblical  names  in  speaking  of  places,  he  did  so 
because  they  were  generally  received  names,  and  not  because  they 
were  established  as  such.  The  explorers  must  be  content,  he  feared, 
to  be  baffled  and  perplexed  for  a  long  time  to  come  before  they  could 
bring  out  Jerusalem  as  it  was ;  for,  startling  as  it  might  appear, 
they  had  not  yet  a  single  fixed  point  from  which  to  commence.  For 
instance,  though  the  Temple  was  known  to  be  on  a  particular  space 
(the  Moriah  area),  yet  there  was  space  there  for  three  such  sites  ;  and 
Mount  Sion  was  put  to  the  north  of  Moriah  by  some,  and  to  the  west 
by  others  of  authority.  It  was  only  by  patient  investigation  that 
hopes  could  be  entertained  of  a  satisfactory  conclusion.  He  then 
proceeded  to  describe  the  Haram  area,  in  which  he  said  there  was  no 
doubt  a  mine  of  information.  The  Moriah  area  was  scooped  out  into 
large  tanks,  and  one  would  hold  one  million  gallons  of  water ;  an- 
other was  found  capable  of  holding  seven  hundred  thousand ;  and 
altogether  about  five  million  gallons  could  be  stowed  away.  Near 
here  was  a  place  called  the  "Well  of  the  Leaf,  of  which  the  legend  was 
told  that  a  man  wandered  down  it,  and  coming  to  a  door,  opened  it. 
He  found  himself  in  a  beautiful  garden,  and  plucking  a  leaf  he  re- 
turned. On  telling  his  tale  he  was  greeted  as  of  little  sense  for  leav- 
ing a  garden  which  his  listeners  believed  to  be  Paradise,  which  he 
would  never  have  another  chance  of  seeing  again.  The  gallant  officer 
continued  at  some  length,  and  explained  that  the  stables  of  Solomon 
had  been  discovered,  as  well  as  streams  of  water  which  led  to  the 
opinion  that  the  source  of  King  Hezekiah's  hidden  spring  of  water 
would  be  discovered.  He  concluded,  amid  warm  cheers,  by  express- 
ing the  interest  taken  in  the  works  by  those  who  are  called  the  An- 
glo-Saxon race,  from  both  Britain  and  America. 

Mr.  Layard,  M.P.,  said  that  few  persons  could  understand  how 
arduous  werj  the  labors  Lieutenant  Warren  had  carried  out,  not  only 
as  respected  the  heat  and  the  other  influences,  but  from  the  fact  that 
the  exploration  party  were  working  amid  a  hostile  people,  who  saw 


THE   MOABITE   STONE.  433 

places  given  over  to  strangers  which  they  regarded  as  sacred.  As  to 
the  "  findings,"  he  reminded  those  present  that  he  warned  them  they 
were  not  to  expect  any  monuments  like  those  found  at  Nineveh,  for 
the  Jews  did  not  make  such  things,  for  religious  reasons,  and  for  an- 
other— they  had  no  material.  He  spoke  about  monuments  in  the 
Louvre  at  Paris,  at  one  time  stated  to  be  Jewish,  and  threw  grave 
doubts  upon  the  character  of  those  monuments. 

Among  the  loose  objects  found  here  by  the  English  explorers,  and 
taken  to  England,  are  a  number  of  stone  balls,  missiles  of  war. 
These  may  have  been  used  by  the  Crusaders  possibly  earlier.  In 
1418,  the  English  had  7,000  stone  balls  made  for  such  a  purpose  in 
the  quarries  at  Maid  stone,  and  there  are  many  cannon-balls  of  stone, 
enormously  large,  lying  on  the  banks  of  the  river  near  Constantinople. 

Among  the  specimens  recently  brought  to  Jerusalem,  found  in  the 
vicinity,  is  a  stone  bearing  the  figure  of  a  god  sitting  on  a  throne, 
with  priests  on  both  sides,  and  a  Hunyaritish  inscription  two  lines 
in  length,  which  had  been  brought  from  Yeman,  and  was  offered  for 
sale.  Dr.  Oscar  Meyer,  the  Chancellor  of  the  North  German  Con- 
federate Consulate  since  Dr.  Peterman  resigned,  succeeded  in  obtain- 
ing an  impression,  which  is  now  in  the  hands  of  the  Confederate 
Consul,  Dr.  Blau,  who  is  residing  for  a  time  at  Berlin.  The  inscrip- 
tion is  said  to  contain  the  name  of  Athtar  (Astarte}.  Doubtless, 
Jerusalem  will  become  a  great  center  now  for  the  distribution  of 
Oriental  antiquities. 

THE    MOABITE   STONE. 

In  connection  with  these  explorations  of  Jerusalem,  I  call  attention 
here  to  the  discovery  of  the  Moabite  Stone,  because  the  search  and 
the  finding  of  this  relic  grew  out  of  the  excitement  awakened  by  the 
London  Palestine  Fund  in  its  varied  labors.  My  engraving  is  the 
large  one  prepared  for  Scribner's  Monthly,  and  my  description  that 
of  the  (American)  "  Palestine  Exploration  Society,"  to  whose  courtesy 
I  am  greatly  indebted  for  the  use  of  this  and  several  other  engravings 
used  in  the  present  volume.  The  territory  selected  by  this  young 
and  vigorous  society  is  that  in  which  this  stone  was  found,  viz.,  the 
land  of  Moab.  Every  member  of  the  Executive  Committee  of  this 
(American)  has  visited  the  Holy  Land,  and  has  therefore,  a  personal 
enthusiasm  in  the  work  ;  and  the  wishes  of  all  true  Masons  must  go 

with  them  in  their  labors. 

28 


4.34  THE   MOABITE   STONE. 

The  most  exciting  incident  of  recent  explorations  in  Palestine  was 
the  discovery  among  the  ruins  of  the  ancient  Dibon,  east  of  the  Dead 
Sea,  of  a  stone  in  a  perfect  state  of  preservation,  containing  an  in- 
scription of  thirty-four  lines  by  Mesha,  a  king  of  Moab,  a  little  after 
the  time  of  Omri,  king  of  Israel.  In  a  quarrel  of  the  Arabs  over  the 
possession  of  the  stone,  it  was  broken  into  fragments,  and  the  inscrip- 
tion seriously  impaired.  The  translation  given  is  that  of  Christian 
D.  Ginsburg,  LL.D.,  according  to  his  text. 

The  Moabite  Stone  was  a  neatly-cut  block  of  black  basalt,  3  feet 
8£  inches  high,  2  feet  3£  inches  wide,  and  1  foot  1^^-  inch  thick, 
rounded  at  both  ends,  and  inscribed  with  thirty-four  straight  lines 
of  alphabetic  writing. 

It  was  found  by  Rev.  R  A.  Klein,  August  19th,  1868,  at  the  en 
trance  of  the  ruined  Moabitish  town  of  Dibon,  once  a  capital  city  of 
Moab  (although  built  by  the  children  of  Gad,  Num.  xxxii.  34),  and 
records  the  successful  rebellion  of  Mesha,  king  of  Moab,  against  the 
Israelitish  yoke  (see  2  Kings,  chap.  iii.  4),  after  a  forty  years'  op- 
pression by  the  house  of  Omri. 

Although  broken  to  pieces  through  Arabic  jealousy,  its  inscription 
has  been  preserved,  with  the  exception  of  about  one-seventh ;  and 
two-thirds  of  the  stone  itself  is  now  in  the  possession  of  M.  Ganneau 
and  the  Palestine  Exploration  Society.  This  inscription  is  the  old- 
est alphabetic  inscription  extant,  dating  about  the  year  B.C.  890. 

It  shows  us — 

1.  That  Moab  must  have  been  independent  between  Solomon's 
reign  and  that  of  Oinri.    Under  David  and  Solomon  we  know  it  was 
subject  to  Israel. 

2.  That  Dibon  was  its  capital. 

3.  That  the  Semitic  alphabet  was  the  Phoenician,  which  is  our 
alphabet  in  its  earlier  forms.    The  letters  A,  N,  K,  M,  0,  U,  D,  T,  L, 
H,  K,  are  almost  identical  with  the  Roman  and  Greek  characters. 

4.  That  punctuation  was  carefully  observed  in  old  writings,  so  far 
as  to  separate  by  marks  both  words  and  sentences. 

5.  That  the  plural  in  N  is  not  a  late  form. 

6.  That  Moab  was  called  by  the  Moabites,  Mab  or  Meab. 

7.  That  the  name  of  Jehovah  was  openly  spoken  and  known  by 
nations  around  as  the  name  of  Israel's  God,  and  that  the  pious  horror 
of  the  Tetragrammaton  did  not  exist  nine  centuries  before  Christ. 

8.  That  Pliny's  and  Aristotle's  views  that  only  sixteen  or  eighteen 
letters  were  brought  by  Cadmus  from  the  East  into  Greece,  and  that 


THE   MOABITE   STONE.  431 

the  Greeks  invented  the  rest,  are  false,  the  whole  twenty-two  heing 
here  found.  Hence  the  119th  Psalm,  and  the  other  alphabetic  Psalms, 
and  the  Book  of  Lamentations  (having  an  alphabetic  division),  are 
not  to  be  deemed  modern,  as  some  would  have  them  to  be  for  this 
reason. 

TRANSLATION"  OF  THE  INSCRIPTION  ON  THE   MOABITE   STONE. 

1  I  Mesha  am  son  of  Chemoshgad  King  of  Moab,  the 

2  Dibonite.     My  father  reigned  over  Moab  thirty  years,  and 
I  reigned 

3  after  my  father.    And  I  erected  this  Stone  to  Chemosh  at 
Karcha  [a  Stone  of] 

4  [Sa]lvation,  for  he  saved  me  from  all  despoilers  and  let  me  see 

my  desire  upon  all  my  enemies, 

5  and  Om[r]i,  King  of  Israel,  who  oppressed  Moab  many  days,  for 

Chemosh  was  angry  with  his 

6  [lajnd.     His  son  succeeded  him,  and  he  also  said,  I  will  oppress 

Moab.    In  my  days  he  said,  [Let  us  go] 

7  and  I  will  see  my  desire  on  him  and  his  house,  and  Israel  said,  I 

shall  destroy  it  for  ever.    Now  Omri  took  the  land 

8  Medeba  and  occupied  it  [he  and  his  son  and  his  son's]  son,  forty 

years.     And  Chemosh  [had  mercy] 

9  on  it  in  my  days  ;  and  I  built  Baal  Meon,  and  made  therein  the 

ditch  and  I  [built] 

10  Kirjathaim.    For  the  men  of  Gad  dwelled  in  the  land  [Ataro]th 

from  of  old,  and  the  K[ing  of  I]srael  fortified 

11  A[t]aroth,  and  I  assaulted  the  wall  and  captured  it,  and  killed 

all  the  wa[rriors  of] 

12  the  wall,  for  the  well-pleasing  of  Chemosh  and  Moab ;  and  I 

removed  from  it  all  the  spoil,  and  [of- 

13  fered]  it  before  Chemosh  in  Kirjath ;  and  I  placed  therein  the 

men  of  Siran  and  the  me[n  of  Zereth] 

14  Shachar.     And  Chemosh  said  to  me  Go  take  Nebo  against 

Israel.     [And  I] 

15  went  in  the  night,  and  I  fought  against  it  from  the  break  of 

dawn  till  noon,  and  I  took 

16  it  and  slew  in  all  seven  thousand  [men,  but  I  did  not  kill  the 

women 

17  and  maidens,]  for  [I]  devoted  [them]  to  Ashtar-Chemosh ;  am1 

I  took  from  it 


UNEXPLAINED   STONE-MARKS.  43? 

18  [the  vesjsels  of  Jehovah  and  cast  them  down  before  Chemosh 

And  the  King  of  Israel  fortif[ied] 

19  Jahaz,  and  occupied  it,  when  he  made  war  against  me ;  and 

Chemosh  drove  him  out  before  [me  and] 

20  I  took  from  Moab  two  hundred  men,  all  chiefs,  and  fought 

against  Jahaz  and  took  it, 

21  in  addition  to  Dibon.    I  built  Karcha,  the  wall  of  the  forest, 

and  the  wall 

22  of  the  city,  and  I  built  the  gates  thereof,  and  I  built  the  towers 

thereof,  and  I 

23  built  the  palace,  and  I  made  the  prisons  for  the  men  of  .... 

with  [in  the] 

24  wall.    And  there  was  no  cistern  within  the  wall  in  Karcha,  and, 

I  said  to  all  the  people,  Make  for  yourselves 

25  every  man  a  cistern  in  his  house.     And  I  dug  the  ditch  for 

Karcha  with  the  [chosen]  men  of 

26  [I]srael.     I  built  Aroer  and  I  made  the  road  across  the  Arnon. 

27  I  built  Beth-Bamoth,  for  it  was  destroyed ;  I  built  Bezer,  for  it 

was  cu[t  down] 

28  by  the  fifty  m[en]  of  Dibon,  for  all  Dibon  was  now  loyal;  and 

I  sav[ed] 

29  [from  my  enemies]  Bikran,  which  I  added  to  my  land,  and  I 

bui[lt] 

30  [Beth-Gamul],   and   Beth-Diblathaim,   and  Beth-Baal-Meon, 

and  I  placed  there  the  Mofabites] 

31  [to   take  possession   of]   the  land.     And   Horonaim  .  dwelt 
•  therein  .... 

32  And  Chemosh  said  to  me,  Go  down,  make   war  against 
Horonaim,  and  ta[ke  it]     .... 

33  Chemosh  in  my  days 

34  year  and  I    .... 

In  immediate  connection  with  this  great  discovery,  I  give  an  en- 
graving and  description  of  some  interesting  and  important  inscrip- 
tions found  by  Mr.  J.  Aug.  Johnson,  United  States  Consul-General 
in  Syria  (now  a  resident  of  New  York),  showing  what  a  great  field 
awaits  exploration  in  the  valleys  and  plains  of  Northern  Syria.  For 
this  engraving  I  am  indebted  to  the  society  already  named.  Mr. 
Johnson's  account  of  this  discovery  is  as  follows  : 

"  Hamath,  on  the  northern  border  of  the  '  Promised  Land,'  was 


438  UNEXPLAINED  STONE-MARKS. 

the  capital  of  a  kingdom  at  the  Exodus;  its  king,  Toi,  yielded 
allegiance  to  King  David  (2  Sam.  viii.  9) ;  it  was  called  "great"  by 
Amos  (vi.  2),  and  was  spoken  of  by  an  Assyrian  monarch  as  among 
the  most  celebrated  of  his  conquests  (2  Kings  xviii.  34).  It  was 
originally  the  residence  of  Canaanites  (Gen.  x.  18),  and  is  frequently 
mentioned  as  the  extreme  limit  of  the  Holy  Land  towards  the  north- 
Hamath,  as  it  is  now  called,  has  at  present  a  population  of  about 
30,000  inhabitants. 

"While  looking  through  the  bazaar  of  this  old  town,  in  1870,  with 
Rev.  S.  Jessup,  of  the  Syria  Mission,  we  came  upon  a  stone  in  the 
corner  of  a  house  which  contained  an  inscription  in  unknown  charac- 
ters. We  did  not  succeed  in  getting  squeeze-impressions,  for  fanat- 
ical Moslems  crowded  upon  us  when  we  began  to  work  upon  the 
stone,  and  we  were  obliged  to  be  content  with  such  copies  of  this  and 
other  inscriptions  subsequently  found  on  stones  over  and  near  the 
city  gate,  and  in  the  ancient  bridge  which  spans  the  Orontes,  as  could 
be  obtained  by  the  aid  of  a  native  painter.  In  this  we  were  greatly 
aided  by  Mr.  Jessup,  and  by  Mr.  F.  Bambino,  of  the  French  Consu- 
late, who  pronounced  the  copies  to  be  accurate.  Mr.  Jessup  endeav- 
ored to  purchase  a  blue  stone  containing  two  lines  of  these  strange 
characters,  but  failed  to  obtain  it  because  of  the  tradition  connected 
with,  and  the  income  derived  from  it.  Deformed  persons  were  will- 
ing to  pay  for  the  privilege  of  lying  upon  it  in  the  hope  of  a  speedy 
cure,  as  it  was  believed  to  be  efficacious  in  spinal  diseases. 

"We  should  naturally  expect  to  find  in  this  vicinity  some  trace  of 
the  Assyrian  and  Egyptian  conquerors  who  have  ravaged  the  vallej 
of  the  Orontes,  and  of  their  struggles  with  the  Hittites  on  this  ancient 
battle-field,  and  of  Solomon,  who  built  stone  cities  in  Hamath  (S 
Chron.  viii.  4),  of  which  Palmyra  was  one.  But  we  find  nothing  of 
the  Palmyrene  on  these  stones.  The  arrow-headed  characters  ai 
suggestive  of  Assournasirpal.  In  the  inscription  on  the  monolith  of 
Nimroud,  preserved  in  the  British  Museum,  in  relating  his  exploit 
915  B.C.,  he  says :  '  In  this  time  I  took  the  environs  of  Mount  Lebanoi 
I  went  towards  the  great  sea  of  Phoenicia.  ...  I  received  tribut 
from  .  .  .  Tyre,  Sidon,  etc.  .  .  .  They  humbled  themselves  befoi 
me.'  And  a  little  later,  870-8  B.C.,  Salmanazar  V.  says :  '  In  my 
twenty-first  campaign  I  crossed  the  Euphrates  for  the  twenty-firs 
time ;  I  marched  towards  the  cities  of  Hazael,  of  Damascus.  I  re- 
ceived the  tributes  of  Tyre,  Sidon,  and  Gebal.' 

"  Until  the  interpretation  of  these  mysterious  characters  shall  be 


UNEXPLAINED   STONE-MARKS.  439 

given,  a  wide  field  is  open  to  conjecture.  Alphabetic  writing  was  m 
use  1500  B.C.,  but  the  germs  of  the  alphabetic  system  were  found  in 
the  hieroglyphic  and  hieratic  writing  of  the  Egyptians,  upwards  of 
2000  B.C.  Some  of  the  attempts  at  picture-writing  on  these  Hamath 
stones  suggest  the  Egyptian  system,  which  consists  of  a  certain  num- 
b',"  of  figures  to  express  letters  or  syllables,  and  a  vast  number  of 
ideographic  or  symbolic  forms  to  represent  words.  Other  characters 
represent  Phoenician  letters  and  numerals  not  unlike  the  Phoenician 
witing  on  the  foundation-stones  of  the  Temple  at  Jerusalem,  recently 
deciphered  by  Dr.  Deutsch,  of  the  British  Museum. 

"  In  framing  their  alphabet  the  Phoenicians  adopted  the  same  pro- 
cess previously  employed  in  the  Egyptian  phonetic  system,  by  taking 
the  first  letter  of  the  name  of  the  object  chosen  to  represent  each 
sound ;  as,  A,  for  aleph  (a  bull) ;  B,  for  beth  (a  house) ;  G,  for  ghimel 
(a  camel) ;  in  the  same  manner  as  the  Egyptians  represented  A,  by 
an  eagle,  akhem  ;  M,  by  an  owl,  monlag,  etc. 

"  Some  scholars  have  designated  Babylonia  as  the  true  mother  of 
the  characters  employed  in  very  ancient  times  in  Syria  and  Mesopo- 
tamia. And  it  appears  that  besides  the  cuniform  writing  found  on 
Assyrian  and  Babylonian  monuments,  a  cursive  character  was  also 
employed  identical  with  the  Phoenician,  and  therefore  possibly  bor- 
rowed by  the  latter.  Kenrick,  however,  remarks  on  this  theory,  that 
the  occurrence  of  these  characters  only  proves  the  intercourse  be- 
tween the  two  people,  and  not  that  the  cuniform  was  the  parent  of 
the  Phoenician.  We  have  in  these  inscriptions  of  Hemath  a  melange 
of  f.11  three,  and  perhaps  a  connecting  link  between  the  earliest  sys- 
tenid.  To  suppose  them  to  be  bi-lingual  or  tri-lingual  only  increases 
tb«,  difficulty  of  interpretation  in  this  case,  for  there  is  not  enough 
of  either  to  furnish  a  clue  to  the  rest. 

'•*  The  '  Carpentras  Stone '  contains  an  analogous  inscription  ;  it 
comes  near  to  the  Phoenician,  and  has  been  thought  to  present  the 
most  ancient  specimen  of  the  Aramean  series.  This  and  the  Palmy- 
rene  writing  form  the  links  between  the  coin  characters  and  the 
square  characters,  and  are  supposed  to  represent  a  language  in  a  state 
of  transition.  That  the  Hebrews  borrowed  the  use  of  writing  from 
Mesopotamia  or  Phoenicia  has  been  universally  admitted ;  and,  ac- 
cording to  Gesenius,  the  old  form  of  their  writing  was  derived  from 
the  Phoenician,  and  retained  by  the  Samaritans  after  the  Jews  had 
adopted  another  character  of  Aramaic  origin. 

"  Now  may  it  not  be  that  in  these  Hamath  inscriptions  we  have 


UNEXPLAINED   STONE-MARKS.  441 

fallen  upon  a  transition  period,  when  the  Phoenicians,  or  their  prede- 
cessors in  the  land,  were  using  the  elements  of  writing  then  in  ex- 
istence, and  before  the  regular  and  simple  Phoenician  alphabet  had 
been  perfected? 

"The  '  Carpeutras  Stone  '  has  been  considered  by  Geseniusto  have 
been  executed  by  a  Syrian  of  the  Seleucidian  period.  The  'Kosetta 
Stone'  dates  back  to  193  B.C.  The  characters  on  these  stones  have 
much  in  common  with  those  of  Hamath.  '  Champollion's  Key  to 
the  Hieroglyphics '  will  be  of  aid,  perhaps,  in  solving  the  present  mys- 
tery. But  we  shall  be  surprised  if  the  inscriptions  of  Hamath  do  not 
prove  to  be  older  and  of  greater  interest  than  any  recent  discovery 
of  Egypto-Aramean  or  hieroglyphic  characters. 

"  Mr.  E.  H.  Palmer,  of  the  British  Syrian  Exploration  Fund,  saw 
our  copies  at  Beyrout,  while  on  his  way  from  an  exploring  tour  in 
the  Desert  of  Tih.  He  was  so  persuaded  of  their  archseological  im- 
portance, that  he  induced  the  British  Society  to  send  a  learned  Ori- 
entalist, Mr.  Drake,  to  Syria,  to  obtain  squeeze-impressions  and 
photographs  of  all  these  and  any  other  similar  inscriptions.  His  re- 
port will  be  looked  for  with  great  interest.  In  the  last  number  of 
{he  Journal  of  the  American  Oriental  Society,  it  is  stated  that  Mr. 
Palmer  has  already  found  in  a  Syrian  MS.  lying  in  the  University 
of  Cambridge,  other  copies  of  these  Hamath  inscriptions.  They  are 
said  to  be  imperfect.  We  do  not  learn,  however,  that  the  Syrian  MS. 
has  been  translated,  or  that  any  theory  of  interpretation  has  been 
advanced.  Dr.  Eisenlohr,  Professor  of  Egyptology  at  the  University 
of  Heidelberg,  in  a  letter  asking  permission  to  publish  these  inscrip- 
tions in  Germany,  says  :  'Though  I  believe  we  are  at  present  not  able 
to  give  a  translation  of  these  inscriptions,  I  am  still  persuaded  they 
will  be  of  the  highest  interest  for  the  scientific  world,  because  they 
are  a  specimen  of  the  first  manner  of  writing  of  the  people  of  that 
country.' 

"These  inscriptions,  and  the  bas-reliefs  on  the  monument  called 
Kamua  Hurmul,  in  Coelo  Syria,  near  the  source  of  the  Orontes,  and 
possibly  of  the  same  period,  are  an  enigma,  as  yet,  to  the  most  learned 
Orientalists.  It  is  to  be  hoped,  however,  now  that  attention  is  again 
called  to  the  subject,  that  the  clue  may  be  found  that  shall  unlock 
their  meaning,  and  that  Northern  Syria  will  be  no  longer  overlooked 
by  the  explorer." 


CHAPTER  XXV. 


MOUNT  MORIAH. 


N  my  lec- 
tures since 
1868, 1  have 
found  no 
subject  con- 
nected with  the  Holy 
Land  so  difficult  to 
elucidate  as  the  plat- 
form or  foundation 
walls  on  which  the 
Temple  of  Solomon 
was  built,  where  stood 
in  cedar  and  gold  and 
marble  that  grandest 
expression  of  national 
power  and  magnifi- 
cence the  world  has 
ever  seen.  The  or- 
dinary newspaper  no- 
tices concerning  "  the 
foundation  of  the 
Temple,"  only  mis- 
lead the  reader,  as  he 
conceives  nothing  but 


PLAN   OF   MOUNT   MORIAH. 


the  ordinary  appearance  presented  when  a  building  has  been  de- 
Btroyed  by  fire  or  violence,  leaving  nothing  but  the  heavy  work  partly 
in  and  partly  out  of  the  ground. 


THE   NARROW,  KNOBBY   RIDGE.  445 

THE    FOUNDATION   OF  THE  TEMPLE. 

It  is  difficult  for  the  superficial  reader  to  comprehend  that 
although  the  Temple  of  Solomon  is  absolutely  gone—effaced,  from 
the  earth,  so  that  not  a  crumb  or  fragment  can  be  recognized — 
yet  its  foundation  remains.  By  this  term  is  not  meant  the 
walls  upon  which  the  Temple  was  built  (comparing  it  with  an 
ordinary  edifice),  but  the  platform,  the  hill,  the  mound  artificially 
erected  to  serve  as  a  basis  for  the  sublime  structure.  In  the  present 
chapter  I  commence  by  clearing  up  this  matter,  so  essential  to  a  pro- 
per understanding  of  Solomon's  Temple,  and  show  what  was  the 
foundation  that  has  so  well  withstood  the  changes  of  twenty-nine 
centuries. 

The  bill,  styled  in  the  Old  Testament  Moriah,  and  more  recently 
Mount  Moriah,  was,  by  nature,  a  narrow,  knobby,  crooked  ridge  (of 
the  class  familiarly  known  as  "  hog's  back  "),  deeply  channeled  by 
ravines  and  gulleys,  honeycombed  with  caves,  and  in  no  proper 
sense  fit  to  be  used  as  the  basis  of  a  great  temple.  With  radical 
reconstruction  to  transform  this  unsightly  and  circumscribed  ridge 
into  a  solid,  broad,  high,  and  durable  platform,  was  a  problem  of 
stupendous  magnitude ;  as  great  a  one,  perhaps  even  greater,  than 
would  have  been  that  of  making  a  platform  entirely  artificial. 

In  my  illustration  of  this  subject  in  my  public  lectures,  I  have 
sometimes  used  the  following  figure  as  conveying  a  partial  idea  of 
the  task  that  devolved  upon  Hiram  and  his  builders :  Go  out  upon 
a  level  plain;  measure  off  an  oblong  square  1,600  feet  by  1,000,  equal 
to  thirty-six  and  a  half  acres ;  build  a  wall  around  it  of  great  stones, 
eight,  ten,  twenty,  and  even  forty  feet  long,  and  of  proportionate 
breadth  and  thickness ;  bind  the  foundation-stones  of  this  wall  firmly 
together  with  clamps  of  iron  and  lead,  and  in  the  same  manner  fas- 
ten them  into  the  native  rock  that  lies  below ;  raise  that  wall  to  an 
average  height  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet  of  solid  mason  work ;  fill 
up  solid  the  whole  area  of  thirty-six  and  a  half  acres  to  that  great 
height  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet !  This  being  done,  you  will  have 
such  a  platform  as  was  erected  by  Solomon's  craftsmen,  upon  which 
to  build  the  Temple. 

The  figure  is  not  absolutely  correct ;  for  there  was  a  central  core  to 
the  platform,  viz.,  the  original  Mount  Moriah ;  and  in  the  mason- 
work  many  large  vaults  and  subterranean  chambers  were  left  But 
the  figure  is  sufficiently  exact  for  an  ordinary  lecture. 


446  AN  INTERESTING   RUIN. 

Now,  when  we  describe  the  foundations  of  King  Solomon's  Tem- 
ple as  still  remaining,  we  allude  to  this  stupendous  base,  the  plat- 
form of  thirty-six  and  a  half  acres,  constructed  in  so  substantial  a 
manner  that  neither  time  nor  the  devastations  of  barbarian  force, 
nor  the  mighty  bruit  of  earthquakes,  has  had  power  to  break  it  up 
So  large  are  the  stones  of  which  the  outer  walls  are  built,  so  artistic- 
ally are  they  laid  together  in  relation  to  each  other,  and  so  firmly 
morticed  at  their  interior  edges,  and  at  their  points  of  junction  with 
the  native  rock,  that  it  is  safe  to  say  that  no  power  that  human 
hands  can  apply  will  ever  remove  them,  nor  will  any  volcanic  force 
affect  them,  less  than  that  which  would  elevate  the  bed  of  the  sea 
and  sink  the  mountains  into  the  depths. 

It  is  mythically  related  that  when  the  architect  Hiram  was  brought 
to  Jerusalem,  and  conducted  by  King  Solomon  to  the  summit  of 
Mount  Olivet,  from  which  he  was  shown  the  general  contour  of  the 
hill  of  Moriah,  that  skilled  artist  pointed  to  Scopus,  the  broad  and 
beautiful  elevation  less  than  a  mile  to  the  north  of  the  city,  and 
suggested  that  as  a  much  more  appropriate  basis  for  the  Temple. 
Such  an  idea  will  occur  to  the  observer  even  at  the  present  day;  still 
more  when  he  considers  that  all  this  elevation  before  him,  inclosed 
in  thirty-six  acres  and  a  half,  and  containing  so  many  buildings,  is  of 
artificial  construction,  and  originally  presented  nothing  but  a  rugged, 
unsightly  succession  of  knobs.  The  elevation  on  the  north  of  the 
city  had  everything  of  beauty  and  magnitude  to  recommend  it,  while 
all  that  could  be  alleged  in  favor  of  Moriah  was  the  historical  facts 
connected  with  the  offering  of  Isaac  by  Abraham,  and  the  Destroy- 
ing Angel  who  stood  there  in  the  days  of  David. 

Fortunately  for  my  subject,  there  is  a  platform  or  artificial  basis 
analogous  to  this  foundation  of  Solomon's  Temple  near  a  place  called 
Alma,  about  fifteen  miles  southeast  of  Tyre.  To  reach  it  you  go 
from  Alma  in  a  southerly  direction,  down  a  ravine  called  Ain  Hor, 
for  about  three  miles,  and  enter  Wady  Benna  near  the  village  of  the 
same  name,  which  lies  under  mighty  cliffs  full  of  caverns.  Passing 
down  this  wady  (or  valley)  a  little  way,  you  turn  up  a  branch  wady 
to  the  southeast,  and  reach,  through  a  woody  and  almost  trackless 
region,  the  Wady  el  Kurn,  directly  opposite  the  castle.  Here  the 
wady  is  600  feet  deep,  the  sides  being  almost  perpendicular,  and  cov- 
ered with  bushes  and  briers. 

Now,  the  ridge  upon  which  the  castle  of  Kurein  stands  was,  like 
Mount  Moriah,  originally  extremely  narrow.  Even  now  it  is  only  a 


HANDMARK   OP  HIRAM'S    BUILDERS.  447 

few  feet  wide  (from  south  to  north)  at  the  point  beyond  the  castle, 
and  has  ragged  cliffs  descending  on  each  side  to  a  great  depth.  The 
top  of  this  ridge  was  widened  by  walls  built  up  from  below,  as  was 
done  by  Solomon  on  Mount  Moriah,  to  enlarge  the  platform  of  the 
Temple.  This  basement-work  is  very  solid,  and  exhibits  very  fine 
specimens  of  the  old  Jewish  or  Phoenician  bevel.  On  this  platform 
stood  a  noble  tower  of  extremely  well-cut  and  very  large  stones,  but 
not  beveled.  They  are  all  three  feet  thick,  and  of  various  lengths  up 
to  ten  feet.  It  must  have  been  quite  impregnable  before  the  inven- 
tion of  cannon.  The  ridge  falls  down  rapidly  toward  the  river,  in  a 
direction  nearly  west,  having  the  sides  almost  perpendicular.  There 
are  three  other  towers  or  departments,  each  lower  than  the  one  above, 
and  also  wider,  for  the  hill  bulges  out  as  it  descends,  and  the  lowest 
of  all  incloses  a  considerable  area. 

These  various  departments  were  so  connected  as  to  form  one  castle, 
and  yet  so  separated  that  each  would  have  to  be  taken  by  itself.  The 
second  from  the  top  has  in  it  a  beautiful  octagonal  pedestal  of  finely 
polished  stone  about  eight  feet  high,  with  a  cornice,  and  over  it  stood 
eight  demi-columns,  united  inwardly,  a  column  for  each  face  of  the 
pedestal ;  it  probably  supported  an  image  or  statue.  Above  all  spread 
a  lofty  canopy  of  clustered  arches,  like  those  in  the  building  at  the 
river.  The  entire  castle  and  its  hill  are  now  clothed  with  magnifi- 
cent forests  of  oak,  terebinth  bay,  and  other  trees,  whose  ranks  ascend 
shade  above  shade,  and  underneath  is  a  tangled  network  of  briers 
and  bushes,  which  make  it  difficult  to  explore  the  ruins.  The  hill 
of  Castle  Kurein  is  inexpressibly  beautiful  and  imposing;  a  swelling 
pyramid  of  green  hung  up  in  mid-heaven,  with  the  gray  old  tower 
peering  out  here  and  there. 

This  must  present  much  the  appearance  that  Mount  Moriah  did 
in  the  days  of  the  Maccabees,  about  165  B.C.  The  Temple- worship 
had  ceased  several  years  before,  and  the  hill  had  grown  up  in  forest- 
trees,  amid  which  the  great  Temple  and  its  surrounding  courts, 
cloisters,  etc.,  rose  up  as  a  series  of  ruins,  stately  and  imposing. 

The  sketch  I  have  given  of  the  great  platform,  will  still  convey  an 
imperfect  idea,  unless  the  reader  recalls  the  fact  that  around  it»  at 
the  base,  is  an  embankment  of  loose  earth  from  fifty  to  one  hundred 
feet  deep.  This  earth  represents  all  the  debris  of  rubbish,  relics  of 
architecture,  relics  of  domestic  vessels,  and  the  disintegrated  stone 
used  in  the  buildings  above  and  around  it  for  1800  years.  Solomon's 
Temple  itself  (reserving  the  woody  portions  that  were  burnt,  and  the 


448  CONTENTS  OF  THE  GREAT  PLATFORM. 

metallic  portions  that  were  carried  away)  lies  in  that  huge  bank  of 
earth !  I  found  there,  in  a  few  minutes'  search,  specimens  of  various 
kinds  of  building  materials  that  may  once  have  shone  in  the  raye 
which  were  reflected  back  on  the  day  of  the  great  dedication,  when 
Solomon  prayed :  "  Have  respect  to  the  prayer  of  thy  servant,  and  to 
his  supplications,  0  Lord,  my  God,  to  hearken  unto  the  cry  and 
the  prayer  which  thy  servant  prayeth  before  thee,  that  thine  eyes  may 
be  open  upon  this  house  day  and  night,  upon  the  place  whereof  thou 
hast  said  that  thou  wouldst  put  thy  name  there,  to  hearken  unto  the 
prayer  which  thy  servant  prayeth  toward  this  place."  (2  Chronicles 
vi.  19.) 

"Were  that  great  dust-heap  around  Mount  Moriah  sifted,  and  its 
contents  observed  and  preserved,  it  is  not  extravagant  to  say  that  a 
mass  of  remnants  would  be  collected  of  Parian  marble,  Egyptian 
black  marble,  Verd-antique,  Syenite,  and  Gray  Granites,  Porphyry* 
and  other  valuable  building  materials,  which  would  come  near  to 
representing  the  bulk  of  the  Temple  and  its  subsidiary  buildings. 

The  cubic  contents  of  the  great  platform  exceed  ten  million  cubic 
yards !  The  magnitude  of  the  structure  (supposing  it  all  artificial) 
is  three  times  that  of  the  great  Pyramid  of  Cheops,  which  is  about 
three  and  a  half  million  cubic  yards.  Admitting  that  one-half  of 
the  Temple-platform  is  comprised  in  the  native  hill  (Mount  Moriah), 
and  it  is  still  three-tenths  in  excess  of  the  pyramid.  This  fact  is  the 
more  noteworthy  because  we  have  persistently  been  assured  that  the 
Pyramid  of  Cheops  is  the  largest  artificial  structure  in  the  world. 
According  to  historians,  it  took  one  hundred  years  to  complete  it, 
although  no  less  than  one  hundred  thousand  workmen  were  engaged 
upon  it ;  while  the  Temple-platform,  with  its  one  hundred  and  fifty 
thousand  builders,  was  less  than  eight  years  in  course  of  erection 
True,  the  latter  had  the  immense  advantage  of  procuring  their  stone 
within  half  a  mile  of  the  spot  on  which  it  was  to  be  laid,  and  from  a 
quarry  so  much  higher,  in  relation  to  the  platform,  as  to  afford  an 
inclined  plane  of  just  the  convenient  descent  for  their  purpose. 

Estimating  other  great  accumulations  of  materials  by  this,  we  see 
that  in  the  Plymouth  (England)  Breakwater,  begun  in  1812,  the 
amount  of  granite  blocks  used  was  3,666,000  tons,  at  a  cost  of  about 
$7,000,000,  reaching  to  more  than  half  the  material  used  here. 

The  seven  successive  objects  that  have  occupied  this  sacred  ridge, 
to  which  a  Mason's  attention  is  directed,  are — 

1.  The  Altar  of  Abraham. 


THE   RUDE  STONE.  44» 

2.  The  Threshing-floor  of  Oman. 

3.  The  Altar  of  David. 

4.  The  Temple  of  Solomon. 

5.  The  Temple  of  Zerubbabel. 

6.  The  Temple  of  Herod. 

7.  The  Mosque  of  Omar,  believed  to  be  the  work  of  the  Knights 
Templars.     This  Omar  was  an  ascetic,  living  on  barley-bread  and 
dates,  making  a  vaunt  of  poverty  and  humility,  preaching  in  a  ragged 
cloak.     In  the  fourteenth  century  his  building  was  described  as  a 
very  fair  house,  lofty  and  circular,  covered  with  lead,  well  paved 
with  white  marble.     At  that  time  it  was  said  no  such  foul,  impure 
men  as  Christians  and  Jews  were  allowed  in  such  holy  places. 

I  visited  the  place  on  which  the  Temple  of  King  Solomon  stood ; 
explored  the  subterranean  passages  so  far  as  allowable;  inspected 
the  present  buildings,  mostly  of  modern  structure,  and  mourned,  in 
common  with  all  Masonic  visitors,  for  the  desolations  visible  nowhere 
more  than  here.  It  is  a  broad  court,  only  sparsely  covered  with  trees 
and  buildings,  and  paved  with  marble,  about  1,500  feet  in  length 
from  north  to  south,  and  1,000  in  breadth,  presenting  the  immense 
block  (or  rough  ashlar)  over  which  the.  Mosque  of  Omar  is  built,  a 
rude  stone  nearly  sixty  feet  long,  that  beyond  doubt  represents  the 
original  surface  of  the  mountain.  Why  it  was  left  here  when  all  the 
rest  of  the  combing  of  the  ridge  was  cut  away,  is  a  question  upon 
which  antiquarians  have  long  been  at  war. 


INTERIOR  OF  THE  DOME  OF  THE  ROCK. 
29 


450  CROLY'S  ELEGANT  DESCRIPTION. 

The  great  stone  stands  inside  the  railing.  One  of  the  love-songs 
of  the  Arab  poets  has  the  name  of  this  celebrated  rock  as  a  figure  of 
comparison : 

"  Great  is  my  love :  if  my  love  were  in  the  Sakhrah, 
That  great  and  wonderful  rock  the  Sakhrah, 
It  would  be  broken  into  a  thousand  pieces." 

In  stepping  around  and  over  this  "  Noble  Enclosure,"  and  reckon- 
ing up  the  measurements,  my  thoughts  take  their  flight  to  the  mighty 
structure  near  Cairo,  the  great  Pyramid  of  Cheops,  from  which  the 
primeval  standard  of  measurement  was  deduced.  The  unit  of  the 
Pyramid  was  the  one  five-hundred-millionth  part  of  the  earth's  axis 
of  rotation,  and  twenty-five  of  these  units  formed  the  sacred  cubit  by 
which  all  this  ground  and  the  splendid  erections  thereon  were  meas- 
ured. The  progress  of  antiquarian  research  may  yet  connect  the 
Patriarch  Shem,  who,  under  the  name  of  Melchizedek,  occupied 
yonder  hill  of  Sion,  with  that  wonder  of  Egypt. 

The  round  protuberances  seen  on  the  largest  ashlars,  were,  1  think, 
left  for  the  convenience  of  fastening  the  grappling-hooks,  in  raising 
the  heavy  ashlars  to  their  respective  places.  In  the  great  Pyramid 
Cheops  holes  are  found  in  the  sides  of  the  larger  stones,  made  un- 
doubtedly for  the  same  purpose.  Had  Solomon's  builders  been  able 
to  procure  syenite,  as  those  of  Cheops  did,  we  should  have  seen  these 
walls  made  of  granite  slabs  finished  off  with  tlie  skill  and  polish  of  a 
jeweller. 

The  importance  that  King  Solomon  gave  to  this  idea  of  having 
his  Temple  due  east  and  west  may  be  seen  in  this,  that  the  range  of 
the  hill  on  which  it  stands  is  almost  exactly  with  the  meridian,  and 
therefore  the  more  natural  situation  for  the  Temple  was  north  and 
south.  In  contrast  with  its  present  ruined  and  desolate  condition, 
compare  the  magnificent  word-painting  of  Croley  (in  Salathiel}^ 
describing  the  mountain  and  its  glorious  occupant,  the  year  of  it 
destruction,  A.D.  70 : 

u  I  see  the  Court  of  the  Gentiles  circling  the  whole,  a  fortress  of  the 
purest  marble,  with  its  wall  rising  six  hundred  feet  from  the  valley ;  its 
kingly  entrance,  worthy  of  the  fame  of  Solomon  ;  its  innumerable  and 
stately  buildings  for  the  priests  and  officers  of  the  Temple,  and  above 
them,  glittering  like  a  succession  of  diadems,  those  alabaster  porticoe 
and  colonnades  in  which  the  chiefs  and  sages  of  Jerusalem  sat  teaching 


A   FRAGMENT   OF   MARBLE.  451 

the  people,  or  walked,  breathing  the  air,  and  gazing  on  the  grandeur 
of  a  landscape  which  swept  the  whole  amphitheatre  of  the  mountains. 
I  see,  rising  above  this  stupendous  boundary,  the  court  of  the  Jew- 
ish women,  separated  by  its  porphyry  pillars  and  richly-sculptured 
wall ;  above  this,  the  separated  court  of  the  men ;  still  higher,  the 
court  of  the  priests ;  and  highest,  the  crowning  splendor  of  all  the 
central  Temple,  the  place"  of  the  Sanctuary,  and  of  the  Holy  of  Holies, 
covered  with  plates  of  gold,  its  roof  planted  with  lofty  spear-heads 
of  gold,  the  most  precious  marbles  and  metals  everywhere  flashing 
back  the  day,  till  Mount  Moriah  stood  forth  to  the  eye  of  the  stran- 
ger approaching  Jerusalem,  what  it  had  been  so  often  described  by 
its  bards  and  people,  a  mountain  of  snow  studded  with  jewels." 

"  The  grandeur  of  the  worship  was  worthy  of  this  glory  of  archi- 
tecture. Four-and-twenty  thousand  Levites  ministered  by  turns,  a 
thousand  at  a  time.  Four  thousand  more  performed  the  lower  offices. 
Four  thousand  singers  and  minstrels,  with  the  harp,  the  trumpet, 
and  all  the  richest  instruments  of  a  land  whose  native  genius  was 
music,  and  whose  climate  and  landscape  led  men  instinctively  to 
delight  in  the  charm  of  sound,  chanted  the  inspired  songs  of  our 
Warrior-King,  and  filled  up  the  pauses  of  prayer  with  harmonies 
that  transported  the  spirit  beyond  the  cares  and  passions  of  a 
troubled  world." 

What  a  fine  comment  upon  Croley's  beautiful  thought  is  this  pas- 
sage from  the  Fellow-Craft's  lecture: 

"Even  the  Temple  of  Solomon,  so  spacious  and  magnificent,  and 
constructed  by  so  many  celebrated  artists,  escaped  not  the  unsparing 
ravages  of  barbarous  force." 

But  where  are  those  alabaster  columns,  those  porphyry  pilasters,  of 
which  these  authors  speak  ?  Who  can  tell  ?  Many  of  them,  doubt- 
less, lying  in  fragments  in  this  stupendous  mass  of  debris  of  earth 
andstones,  surrounding  the  mountain  a  hundred  feet  thick ;  some  of 
them,  if  tradition  speaks  truly,  in  the  ancient  Church  of  the  Nativity, 
at  Bethlehem,  five  miles  south  of  this  place ;  some  of  them,  perhaps,. 
Nebuchadnezzar  compelled  his  captives  to  carry  away  with  them 
into  Babylon,  as  they  carried  away  so  many  other  things,  trophies  of 
the  Temple  of  Solomon. 

Seeing  a  piece  of  fine  marble  loose  in  the  pavement  as  I  walked 
along  by  the  old  Temple  site,  I  feed  a  soldier  to  lift  it  with  his  bayo- 
net. It  proved  to  be  a  fragment  sawed  from  the  side  of  a  pillar, 
the  convexity  on  that  side  remaining  perfect.  This  specimen  I  still 


452  THE  SUBSTRUCTURES. 

have  at  my  house  in  1872.  It  illustrates  the  shocking  destruction  of 
the  finest  works  of  art  that  has  been  going  on  here  for  many  cen- 
turies. Sueborda,  in  his  "  Seven  Churches  of  Asia,"  describes  simi- 
lar instances  of  beautiful  columns  being  sawed  up  into  slabs  for 
gravestones,  pavements,  tablets,  etc.  To  one  who  enjoys  the  privi- 
lege of  personal  inspection  of  that  thrice-sacred  area  in  which  the 
Temple  of  Solomon  once  stood,  every  portion  of  the  Great  Platform 
is  full  of  interest.  Not  a  block  of  the  original  foundation-wall,  how- 
ever weather-stained  and  weather-worn,  but  is  a  feature  in  the  grand 
old  physiognomy  upon  which  we  love  to  dwell.  The  same  class  of 
interest,  though  in  less  degree,  is  felt  by  all  Freemasons  when  con- 
templating the  local  peculiarities  of  the  sacred  work.  Let  me  de- 
scribe the  southeast  corner. 

Above-ground,  there  is  nothing  that  particularly  attracts  the  ob- 
server's attention  in  the  southeast  corner.  The  splendid  Mosque 
of  Omar,  nearly  a  quarter  of  a  mile  to  the  northwest,  would  most 
probably  fill  his  eye  and  occupy  his  thoughts  for  the  brief  period 
that  he  is  permitted  to  remain  in  this  part  of  the  sacred  inclosure. 
Looking  over  the  battlement  of  the  wall,  he  would  see  that  he  is  sev- 
enty-seven feet  from  its  base,  and  if  his  head  does  not  become  giddy 
— as  Josephus  says  it  will — he  may  note  the  great  size  of  the  blocks 
of  which  i  is  constructed.  These  are  truly  cyclopeau,  and  stand. 
range  upon  range,  sixteen  courses  high  of  the  original  ashlars,  each 
stone  beveled  clear  around  the  exposed  surface.  Near  nim,  and 
immediately  iu  the  corner  of  the  inclosure,  he  will  observe  a  small 
building  covered  with  a  dome,  called  by  the  Moslems  Sid  no,  I*sa 
("of  our  Lord  Jesus"),  in  the  lower  room  of  which  is  an  irregularly 
shaped  trough,  made  of  Jerusalem  marble,  quarried  in  the  great 
excavation  on  the  northern  side  of  the  city,  to  which  we  shall  call 
attention  in  a  future  chapter. 

But  it  is  below-ground  that  the  chief  interest  of  the  Masonic 
explorer  of  this  immense  Platform  will  extend.  Here  are  substruc- 
tures worthy,  in  magnitude  and  the  architectural  skill  necessary  for 
their  construction,  of  the  genius  of  Hiram  himself,  the  Sir  Christo- 
pher Wren  of  his  day.  As  he  stood  upon  yonder  spur  of  Mount 
Olivet,  a  quarter-mile  east,  and  looked  across  the  valley  to  Moriah, 
then  a  narrow,  sharp-backed  ridge,  and  computed  the  amount  of 
material  necessary  to  bring  up  the  Platform  seventy-seven  feet  to  its 
present  level,  he  might  well  ask  himself  from  whence  should  come 
the  supply  of  earth  and  stone?  The  country  around  presents,  and 


ROCK-CUT   CRYPTS.  453 

ever  did  present,  a  rocky  surface  hard  to  loosen  and  break  up ;  and  it 
were  a  design  worthy  of  the  prince  of  architects  to  devise  a  method 
to  save  earth  and  stones  where  earth  was  so  scarce.  This  was  done 
by  the  substitution  of  arches  for  solid  filling.  All  this  southeast  cor- 
ner inside  of  the  foundation  walls  is  hollow,  being  made  up  of  arches. 
Of  this  great  under-ground  work,  Bonar  (Land  of  Promise)  says  it 
forms  the  foundation  for  the  platform  of  the  Temple  area.  The 
arches  are  singularly  massive  and  strong;  strength  alone,  notbeautj 
or  grace,  has  been  consulted  here.  Not  that  there  is  anything  out 
of  taste  in  that  interminable  vista  of  arches,  but  it  is  its  solidity 
that  impresses  the  mind  from  first  to  last.  There  is  nowhere  any- 
thing like  it.  As  we  moved  slowly  down  the  slope  of  the  hill,  and 
felt  the  arches  increasing  in  height  and  massiveness  as  we  advanced, 
we  seemed  to  be  wandering  through  the  rock-cut  crypt  of  some  vast 
Egyptian  temple.  It  looked  more  as  if  the  hill  had  been  excavated 
into  these  cells,  than  that  these  cells  had  been  built  upon  the  hill. 
The  cost  and  labor  must  have  been  great,  and  the  engineering  skill 
which  they  indicate  is  much  beyond  what  modern  ideas  are  inclined 
to  allow  to  ancient  science.  The  level  platform  which  they  produced 
above  forms  a  large  addition  to  the  ancient  hill,  whose  summit,  as  it 
stood  originally,  must  have  been  narrow  and  quite  unsuited  for  any 
building  beyond  that  of  a  tomb.  As  you  first  enter  by  a  kind  of 
trap-door  from  the  platform  above  and  go  southward,  you  think  you 
might  touch  the  roof  with  your  hand,  for  the  supporting  pillars  can- 
not be  more  than  nine  or  ten  feet  high ;  but  as  you  move  down 
the  long  slope,  you  seem  to  be  receding  from  the  roof  till  at  the 
extremity  you  find  that  it  must  be  about  thirty  feet  above  you. 
Wherever  we  looked  we  saw  the  same  massiveness  in  wall,  or  arch,  or 
pillar.  There  appeared  to  be  no  small  stones  in  any  part ;  these  would 
have  been  inadmissible  in  such  a  structure.  We  measured  some  of 
the  stones,  and  found  them  to  average  fifteen  by  eight  feet.  Concern- 
ing these  great  works,  Dr.  J.  T.  Barclay  writes  :  "  They  are  doubt- 
less those  alluded  to  by  Josephus  in  his  description  of  the  construc- 
tion of  the  Temple-wall.  The  declination  of  the  hill  at  the  south- 
east corner  being  greater  than  at  any  other  part,  it  was  found  more 
advantageous  to  bring  it  to  a  general  level  by  erecting  vaults  upon 
lofty  columns  than  by  filling  up  either  with  solid  masonry  or  by  earth, 
as  in  the  case  of  the  narrow  ravines.  The  length  of  these  rock  gal- 
leries, measured  westward  from  the  wall  on  the  easA  is  319  feet;  from 
the  wall  on  the  south,  measuring  northward,  the  different  measuraa 


454 


WATER-SUPPLY. 


vary  considerably ;  the  one  from  the  Triple  Gate  (277  feet  from  the 
east  wall)  being  247  feet  in  length ;  the  third  row  from  the  eastern 
wall  and  the  seven  next  rows  to  the  west  of  it  are  each  188£  feet  in 
length.  To  sum  up,  then,  the  space  occupied  by  these  substructures, 
and  which  otherwise  must  have  been  filled  up  by  solid  masonry  or 
earth,  is  represen  ted  by  a  mass  319  X  247  X  30  feet — less  the  space  occu- 
pied by  the  rough  spurs  or  projections  of  the  ancient  hill. 

The  stones  in  the  wall  near  the  southeast  corner,  though  not  quite 
so  large  as  those  in  the  northeast  and  southwest  respectively,  are  yet 
cyclopean  in  magnitude,  as  has  been  shown  before. 

No  description  can  do  justice  to  these  subterranean  vaults  without 
an  engraving. 

Considerable  resemblance 
can  be  traced  in  the  style  of 
work  done  on  these  crypts 
of  Mount  Moriah  and  the 
ancient  Roman  aqueduct 
made  to  supply  the  city  of 
Smyrna  with  water. 

The  importance  of  a  full 
supply  of  water  for  the  cere- 
monial observances  always 
going  on  in  and  about  the 
Temple,  and  for  the  beverage 
of  the  armies  of  priests  and 
multitudes  of  visitors,  is  seen 
in  the  illustration  of  the 
Royal  Sea,  an  immense  cis- 
tern that  is  fo.und  about  500 
feet  south  of  the  old  Temple 
site.  The  cut  conveys  a  good 
impression  of  it. 

I  found  the  opening  to 
this  great, reservoir  as  I  was  looking  for  the  place  where  lie  the  assas- 
sins of  that  tempestuous  firebrand  of  Rome,  Thomas  a  Becket,  who 
were  buried  here.  The  dimensions  are  given  on  another  page.  Its 
water-supply  was  derived  from  Solomon's  Pools,  eight  miles  south- 
west, the  line  of  aqueduct  being  distinctly  marked  all  the  way. 

To  show  the  steepness  of  this  slope  from  Mount  Moriah  to  the 
valley  of  Jehoshaphat,  I  rolled  u  good-sized  stone  from  near  the 


PIERS    UNDER  S.   E.  CORNER  OF  THE 
TEMPLE-PLATFORM. 


EARTHQUAKES. 


455 


base  of  the  wall,  and  it  continued  its  flight  without  a  pause  until  it 

reached  the  original  bed  of  the  brook  Kedron. 
Oh  that  a  nation  would  do  for  these  masses  of  debris  what  the 
•ench  Army  mJBgypt  did  in  1799  to  the  greater  accumulationg  of 


ROMAN  AQUEDUCT  AT  SMYRNA. 

sand  and  broken  stones  at  the  base  of  the  Great  Pyramid,  removing 
it  all,  and  bringing  the  foundation-stones  of  the  Eternal  Monument 
to  the  clear  light  of  day!  May  not  the  great  Mason-fraternity  yet 
be  induced  to  undertake  it? 

In  comparing  the  size  of 
the    tremendous   blocks     in 
these  walls  with  those  of  the 
Great  Pyramids,  it   will    be 
seen  how  far  Hiram's  build- 
ers excelled  those  of  Cheops 
in  this  respect.     In  a  future 
chapter  I  will  give  measuro 
j  ments    of     many  pyramid- 
I  stones'.       The     two    marble 
j  casing-stones    discovered  by 
Vyse  were  twelve  feet  long, 
CISTERN  ON  MOUNT  MORIAH.  eight  feet  three  inches  broad, 

four  feet  three  inches  high.    These  were  worked  with  such  exquisite 
skill  that  the  edges  were  not  thicker,  he  said,  than  silver-paper. 

Earthquakes  have  affected  this  great  eastern  wall,  breaking  manj 
of  the  large  blocks,  and  in  places  destroying  notably  the  alignment 
of  the  wall ;  but  the  strong  internal  iron  bands  of  which  Josephus 


456  A   REMINISCENCE. 

wrote  have  held  block  to  block  as  the  ligaments  hold  the  bones,  and 
the  whole  to  the  stony  core  on  which  it  rests.  It  is  worth  one'a 
while,  standing  here  at  the  base  of  the  wall,  to  read  the  words,  "  there 
was  a  great  earthquake "  at  the  Kesurrection  (Matt,  xxviii.  2) ; 
"the  earth  did  quake  and  the  rocks  rent,"  at  the  Crucifixion  (Matt. 
xxvii.  51) ;  "  the  place  was  shaken  where  they  were  assembled,"  while 
the  disciples  were  praying  together  (Acts  iv.  21) ;  "  the  year  of  the 
earthquake  "  Am.  L,  1 ;  "  the  hills  did  tremble  "  (Isaiah  v.  25) ;  and 
similar  expressions.  All  these  phenomena  affected  this  great  wail  to  a 
considerable  extent,  breaking  the  huge  stones,  etc. ;  but  the  construc- 
tion thus  far  has  defied  the  utmost  efforts  of  internal  fires  to  over- 
throw it 

It  was  quite  a  pleasant  coincidence,  in  recalling  one  of  David's 
expressions  in  the  Psalms,  to  see,  as  I  stood  on  the  wall  south  of  the 
Golden  Gate,  a  nest  of  the  sparrow  (passer  cisalpina)  in  a  nook  of 
one  of  the  grand  ashlars  far  below  me. 

The  construction-marks  of  the  Phoenician  masons  who  built  the 
Temple  are  unquestionably  of  great  antiquity,  and,  I  think,  the  actual 
memorandums  of  the  stone-squarers  of  Gebal  who  took  Solomon's 
contract  to  build  the  Temple.  However  rude  these  were,  they 
were  sufficient  to  check  the  workmen — to  place  responsibility  in  its 
proper  quarter — to  make  the  correct  tally  of  wages,  and,  if  necessary, 
of  penalties,  and  secure  the  placing  of  each  stone  in  its  proper  place. 
They  are  quite  as  distinct  as  those  to  be  seen  on  the  marble  stones 
of  which  the  public  buildings  at  Washington  are  now  being  con- 
structed. Those  in  the  Pyramid  as  well  as  in  this  wall  are  some- 
times upside  down. 

While  I  was  observing  the  remains  of  this  gabbatlia  (pavement) 
my  foot  slipped,  and  I  nearly  got  a  fall  on  a  glassy  bit  of  Parian  mar- 
ble remaining  in  situ,  about  the  size  of  my  hand.  It  was  a  pleasant 
coincidence  that  near  the  same  spot  slipped  and  fell  in  Titus'  time 
"one  Julian,  a  centurion,  that  came  from  Bithynia,  a  man  of  great 
reputation,"  as  Josephus,  who  knew  him  well,  describes  him.  (  Wars, 
vi.  1-8.)  "  Pursued  by  fate,  which  it  was  not  possible  he  should 
escape,"  says  the  historian,  he  fell  backwards  on  this  smooth  pave- 
ment, "  having  his  shoes  all  filled  with  thick  and  sharp  nails,"  and 
was  stabbed  to  death  and  his  throat  cut  by  the  Jews,  who  thronged 
around  him  with  spears  and  swords.  The  whole  incident  is  vividly 
described  by  Josephus,  and  fits  in  to  my  little  tumble  very  neatly. 

The  muezzin,  or  man  who  does  the  call  from  the  top  of  the  mina- 


MASONIC   IDENTIFICATIONS.  457 

ret  near  by  the  Mosque  of  Omar,  is  a  Uind  man,  necessarily  so,  to  pre- 
vent him  from  seeing  the  faces  of  the  women,  who  would  otherwise 
pass  under  his  observation.  The  poor  fellow  cannot  even  "  go  a  sin- 
gle eye  on  them,"  as  the  story  says.  Kambliiig  through  the  extensive 
and  beautiful  grounds ;  inspecting  the  green  and  red  satin  canopy 
over  the  sacred  rock  (Es-salchard),  which  is  the  gift  of  the  Sultan ; 
recalling  the  Mohammedan  traditions  of  the  builders  of  the  first 
Temple  here,  and 

"  The  magic  powers 

Of  him,  who  in  the  twinkling  of  a  star, 
Built  those  high-pillared  halls," 

I  felt  that  the  true  poet  of  Masonry  might  derive  from  this  hallowed 
locality  all  the  store  of  images  and  inspiration  that  it  has  given  for 
thirty  centuries  to  Jewish,  Christian,  and  Mohammedan  poets. 

So  frequently  does  Jerusalem  and  its  particular  mountains  and 
fountains  appear  in  the  nomenclature  of  American  lodges,  that  I  have 
room  for  only  a  small  part :  Mount  Moriah  Lodge  No.  106,  Ky.,  and 
some  fifty  more ;  Mount  Sion  Lodge  No.  147,  Ky.,  and  many  others  ; 
Mount  Olivet  Lodge  No.  29,  Ky.,  and  very  many  others ;  Bethesda 
Lodge  (referring  to  the  Pool  here  of  that  name)  No.  201,  Tenn.,  and 
others ;  Siloam  Lodge  No.  99,  Georgia,  etc. ;  Mount  Calvary  Lodge 
No.  95,  Iowa;  Temple  Lodge  No.  9,  Del.,  and  numerous  others ;  Solo- 
mon Lodge  No.  5,  Ky.,  with  a  long  list  of  others ;  finally,  the  city 
itself,  Jerusalem  Lodge  No.  9,  Ky.,  and  a  host  of  like  names.  King 
David  is  used  for  No.  139,  Geo.;  62,  Maine;  68,  Md.,  etc.  Zabud  is 
honored  in  No.  175,  Geo.;  Widow's  Son  Lodge  is  No.  60  and  150,  Va. ; 
75,N.C.;  335,  N.Y.;  66,  Ct;  72,  Ala.;  etc.  Zerutoabel  is  recognized 
in  No.  199,  Ky. ;  15,  Geo. ;  329,  N.  Y.,  etc.  Other  places  connected 
with  this  locality  areused  in  like  manner  in  our  rather  jejune  lodge- 
naming. 

As  at  other  places,  I  make  the  Masonic  identifications  complete,  by 
writing  here  the  names  of  zealous  and  worthy  Masons  whose  labors 
in  their  sphere  "keep  light  and  warm"  the  lodges  in  which  they 
work.  At  the  site  of  the  ancient  Temple :  Capt.  Lemaitre,  Thomas  J. 
Jolley,  Kalph  Applewhite,  Charles  Craig,  Lyndon  A.  Smith,  John 
Beach,  Eev.  Colley  A.  Foster,  A.  W.  Blakesley,  Samuel  Catherwood, 
J.  H  Barlow. 

At  the  southeast  corner  of  the  Great  Wall:  Christopher  G. 


4:58  OBSERVATIONS   ON   COLUMNS. 

Israel  Baldwin,  John  Christie,  James  P.  Tucker,  Thomas  J.  Pickett, 
J.  D.  Stockton,  Lewis  I.  Coulter,  Lewis  S.  Williams,  Peter  Thatcher, 
Jr.,  Robert  Dott. 

At  the  Joppa  Gate :  James  A.  Hawley,  Ferd.  Easier,  C.  K.  Peck, 
Michel  Pinner,  E.  S.  Ross,  W.W.  Austin, W.H.Fogg,  Vincent L. Hurl- 
but,  Wm.  M.  Howsley,  Christian  Fetta. 

At  the  Damascus  Gate :  E.  Richardson,  M.D.,  W.  T.  Woodruff,  W. 
F.  Coombs,  M.D.,  W.  P.  Allen,  M.  0.  Waggoner,  Hiram  W.  Hubbard, 
E.  H.  M.  Berry,  E.  H.  English,  J.  C.  Luckey. 

At  St.  Stephen's  Gate :  James  M.  Austin,  M.D.,  W.  C.  Munger, 
Rev.  Stephen  H.  Tyng,  Sr.,  Wm.  S.  Whitehead,  A.  H.  Drummond, 
Samuel  Wilson,  Wm.  T.  Walter,  Albert  P.  Moriarty,  A.  M.  Black, 
Joseph  Robbins. 

In  my  account  of  the  Clay-ground  in  a  preceding  chapter,  I  re- 
ferred to  the  immense  work  performed  there,  of  casting  the  brazen 
(bronze  ?)  columns  for  the  use  of  the  Temple  on  Mount  Moriah.  I 
did  not  fail,  while  walking  over  this  area,  to  make  up  my  judgment 
as  to  the  spot  where  those  ponderous  shafts  were  set  up,  and  to  kin- 
dle the  imagination  with  the  splendid  view  they  must  have  presented 
to  the  traveller  from  any  direction,  and  particularly  from  the  east. 
Turning  the  southwestern  point  of  Mount  Olivet,  where  the  view  is 
the  finest,  the  sight  of  those  mighty  and  mysterious  pillars  musl 
have  absorbed  the  attention  of  the  traveller  beyond  anything  else 
that  the  Temple  of  Solomon  presented. 

While  writing  up  this  paragraph  (Feb.  1872),  I  fell  in  by  good  luck 
with  some  articles  from  the  skilled  and  elegant  pen  of  Prof.  Herbert 
Bright,  of  New  York,  in  "The  Industrial  Monthly,"  entitled  "  Observa- 
tiqns  on  Columns."  Speaking  generally  of  this  greatest  of  all  architect- 
ural features,  he  says  of  certain  ancient  columns,  "the  incomparable 
excellence  of  their  designs  and  proportions  has  defied  the  scrutiny  of 
generations  to  detect  a  fault  or  add  an  embellishment."  Making  no 
special  reference  to  the  brazen  columns  of  Solomon,  he  yet  reprehends 
the  erection  of  isolated  columns  like  that  of  Pompey's  Pillar,  etc.,  and 
suggests  that  some  of  those  monuments  which  we  have  been  in  the 
habit  of  supposing  merely  solitary  pieces,  did  in  fact  support  entab- 
latures. It  is  the  opinion  of  some  of  the  best  writers  on  Solomon's 
Temple,  that  such  was  the  case  with  J.  and  B.,  and  that  in  fact  they 
were  not  disengaged  columns  at  all.  I  am  very  much  of  that  opinion, 
too.  His  description  of  a  wrought-iron  column  of  great  antiquity, 
some  fifty  or  sixty  feet  high,  connected  with  a  celebrated  temple  b 


MOSQUE   CEBEMOBTIALS.  459 

India,  is  a  commentary  upon  Hiram's  work,  which  old  Dr.  Adam 
Clarke  describes  as  being  "beyond  the  ability  of  any  workmen  of  the 
present  day  to  equal." 

The  Mohammedan  Mosques  on  Mount  Moriah  being  considered 
by  those  religionists  the  most  holy  of  their  churches,  except  the  ones 
at  Mecca,  I  introduce  here  a  brief  account  of  their  mosque-worship. 
The  best  time  to  observe  the  ceremonies  is  on  Friday,  which  is  the 
Mohammedan  Sabbath,  but  every  day  in  the  week  will  answer,  for, 
like  the  Catholic  churches  in  our  large  cities,  they  are  always  open 
to  worshippers.  I  entered  one  about  ten  minutes  before  noon,  and 
was  much  interested  in  their  manner  of  worship.  To  avoid  giving 
offence,  I  occupied  an  obscure  corner  near  the  door,  and  took  my  seat 
cross-legged,  according  to  the  native  custom.  I  had  been  careful  to 
remove  my  shoes,  which  I  wore  for  the  purpose,  and  slipped  them 
unperceived  into  my  coat-pocket. 

As  the  company  came  in,  they  took  their  places  side  by  side,  in 
straight  lines,  all  facing  toward  the  south,  which  is  the  direction  of 
Mecca,  denoted  by  the  kiblaJi  in  the  southern  wall  of  the  mosque. 
These  lines  were  about  five  feet  apart,  to  leave  a  convenient  space  for 
prostration  during  the  prayers.  Perfect  silence  and  decorum  were 
observed.  The  muezzin  or  crier  was  all  the  time  calling  out,  in  the 
steeple  (minaret)  high  above  us,  in  long,  harsh  tones  that  could  be 
heard  to  a  very  great  distance,  the  following  Arabic  sentences: 

Allah  hoo  achbar ; 

Allah  hoo  achbar ; 
Oo  ishod  la  illah  il  Allah ; 
Oo  ishod  la  illah  il  Allah ; 
Oo  inne  Mohammed  el  Eesool  Allah. 

This  in  plain  English  is: 

God  is  greater ; 
God  is  greater , 

And  bear  testimony  to  one  God ; 

And  bear  testimony  to  one  God ; 

And  testify  that  Mohammed  is  the  Prophet  of  God. 

This  cry  is  made  five  times  a  day,  viz.,  at  daybreak,  noon,  middle 
oi  afternoon,  at  sunset,  and  at  bedtime.  In  the  daybreak  call  these 
words  are  added : 

Es  salat  ophdel  min  en-noom; 

Es  sullah  koom  wa  kheddin  es  salat. 


460  .       MOSQUE   CEREMONIALS. 

Prayer  is  better  than  sleep ; 
Rise  up  and  offer  prayers. 

In  making  these  calls  he  goes  to  the  four  cardinal  points,  walking 
around  his  little  balcony  near  the  top  of  the  minaret  for  that  pur- 
pose. 

As  the  worshippers  came  in,  and  while  the  muezzin  was  still  mak- 
ing his  circuit  and  invitations,  every  one  began  to  move  his  lips ;  then 
to  bow  and  kneel,  and  place  his  forehead  on  the  floor  between  his 
hands,  which  were  spread  open  and  lying  flat  on  the  floor,  about  six 
inches  apart. 

As  the  muezzin  stopped,  the  Imaums,  or  priests,  who  were  in  the 
gallery,  gave  the  word  of  command,  and  the  performance  com- 
menced. The  evolutions  were  performed  with  military  precision  and 
promptness,  all  rising,  bowing,  kneeling,  and  prostrating  with  the 
system  of  the  far-famed  New  York  Forty-third  Regiment  on  a  field- 
day.  An  aged  man  near  me,  evidently  stiff  and  agonized  with  rheu- 
matism, still  kept  up  with  the  rest,  though  the  sweat  stood  in  great 
beads  on  his  forehead,  and  an  occasional  groan  of  anguish  escaped 
from  him.  When  the  exercises  were  finished,  he  had  to  be  lifted  to 
his  feet  and  led  off  by  two  men,  apparently  his  sons.  But  the  vete- 
ran had  accomplished  his  task,  and  he  left  the  place  smiling. 

The  services  occupied  about  an  hour,  the  same  words  being  re- 
peated and  the  same  evolutions  performed  without  the  least  change. 
When  they  all  fell  on  their  knees  in  unison,  the  great  stone  build- 
ing was  jarred  with  the  shock.  The  voices  of  the  Imaums  were 
affected  and  unnatural,  but  their  command  over  the  worshippers  in 
producing  uniformity  of  ceremony  was  equal  to  that  of  a  general 
over  the  most  thoroughly  disciplined  troops.  No  one  seemed  to  pay 
any  attention  to  my  presence.  The  silence,  decorum,  and  absorbed 
devotion  of  these  people,  with  the  absence  of  pictures,  relics,  and 
idols,  made  a  pleasing  contrast  with  the  scenes  of  noise,  confusion, 
crosses,  images,  emblems,  and  auxiliaries  of  worship  that  fill  the  cor- 
rupt Christian  churches  here.  But,  on  the  other  hand,  the  fact  that 
not  a  female  was  present,  or  would  have  been  allowed  to  be  pres- 
ent, contrasted  unfavorably  even  with  the  worst  forms  of  corrupt 
Christianity. 


CHAPTER  XXVL 

FEEEMASONEY  IN  JEEUSALEM. 

HILE  in  Jerusalem,  I  held  two  Masonic  meetings  in  a 
room  at  the  Mediterranean  Hotel,  near  the  Damascus 
Gate,  in  which  assemblies  several  officers  of  the  British 
war-ships  lying  at  Joppa  were  present ;  also  the  venerable 
Brother  Petermann,  Prussian  Consul,  and  Captain  Charles 
Warren,  R.E.,  who  is  in  charge  of  the  explorations,  as  named  before. 


E.  T.    EOGEES, 
W.  M.  of  Palestine  Lodge  415,  at  Beyrout,  1868. 


DISCOVERT   OF  THE   QUARRY. 

These  conferences  were  delightful  to  me.  Nothing  can  exceed  the 
zeal  of  our  English  brethren  upon  such  occasions ;  and  we  exchanged 
genial  sentiments  and  formed  and  cemented  friendships  which  I  think 
will  be  permanent. 

The  names  of  these  brethren  are  here  given  : 

Lindesay  Goodrich,  Zetland  Lodge  515,  Malta. 

John  Oxland,  R.N.,  St.  Auburn  Lodge  954,  Davenport,  England ; 
also  Zetland  Lodge  515,  etc. 

Edward  Gladstone,  Phoenix  Lodge,  Portsmouth,  England. 

Rev.  J.  Every,  Fidelity  Lodge  1042,  England,  P.  P.  Grand  Chap- 
lain, Eastern  Archipelago,  Singapore. 

All  the  above  were  connected  with  H.  M.  S.  Lord  Clyde,  now  lying 
in  the  port  of  Joppa. 

Charles  "Warren,  Past  Master  of  Lodge  of  Friendship  278,  Gi- 
braltar. 

Henry  Petermann,  Royal  York  of  Berlin,  Prussia,  initiated  in  1826, 
Member  of  the  Fourth  Degree  (Ober  Meister). 

One  of  the  most  agreeable  episodes  in  my  visit  here  was  an  assem- 
blage of  Freemasons  in  the  vast  quarries  that  underlie  the  northeast- 
ern quarter  of  the  city  of  Jerusalem,  and  the  opening  of  a  Moot 
Lodge  there :  this  event  occurred  on  the  afternoon  of  Wednesday, 
May  13. 

A  description  of  these  enormous  caverns  seems  necessary  as  a 
preface  to  the  subject.  The  entrance  is  under  the  city  walls  on  the 
north,  a  short  distance  east  of  the  Damascus  Gate.  This  opening 
was  first  discovered  about  ten  years  ago,  by  Dr.  J.  T.  Barclay,  author 
of  the  celebrated  work  The  City  of  the  Great  King,  to  which  I  have 
more  than  once  referred.  At  that  time,  the  entrance  was  extremely 
difficult  of  access;  but  when  the  Prince  of  Wales  was  here,  a  few 
years  since,  it  was  made  easier.  In  fact,  the  matter  of  entering  and 
traversing  the  entire  quarries  is  now  one  of  the  lighest  and  pleasantest 
parts  of  a  traveller's  business  in  Jerusalem. 

A  city  that  has  been  seventeen  times  captured,  and  often  partially 
(and  several  times  totally)  destroyed,  has,  of  course,  drawn  immensely 
upon  the  building  material  of  the  vicinity.  Add  to  this  the  fact 
that  the  native  stone  around  Jerusalem  is  friable,  and  dissolves 
rapidly  in  the  open  air,  and  the  deader  will  understand  that  some- 
where in  the  vicinity  great  quarries  must  exist.  These,  as  I  said, 
are  on  the  north  side,  and  under  the  northeast  quarter  of  the  city. 
Outside  of  the  walls  a  space  of  several  hundred  feet  in  width  and  a 


OPENING  THE  MOOT  LODGE. 

quarter  of  a  mile  in  horizontal  depth  has  been  quarried  to  the  depth 
of  twenty-five  to  fifty  feet;  while  adjoining  those  excavations  on  the 
south,  and  immediately  under  the  city,  there  is  a  cavern,  as  already 
intimated,  of  equal  extent.  This  is  termed  by  the  natives  the  Cotton 
Mefjara,  by  us  the  great  Jerusalem  Quarry,  and  it  is  here  that  we 
opened  our  Moot  Lodge. 

Entering  with  a  good  supply  of  candles,  we  pushed  southward 
as  far  into  the  quarry  as  we  could  penetrate,  and  found  a  chamber 
happily  adapted  to  a  Masonic  purpose.  It  was  a  pit  in  the  ancient 
cuttings,  about  eighteen  feet  square.  On  the  east  and  west,  conve- 
nient shelves  had  been  left  by  the  original  workmen,  which  answered 
for  seats.  An  upright  stone  in  the  centre,  long  used  by  guides  to  set 
their  candles  upon,  served  us  for  an  Altar.  About  ten  feet  above  the 
master's  station  there  was  an  immense  opening  in  the  wall,  which 
led,  for  aught  I  know,  to  the  original  site  of  the  Temple  of  Solomon, 
We  were  perfectly  tyled  by  silence,  secrecy,  and  darkness,  and  in  the 
awful  depths  of  that  quarry,  nearly  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from  its  open- 
ing, we  felt,  as  we  never  had  before,  how  impressive  is  a  place  which 
none  but  the  All-seeing  Eye  can  penetrate. 

Laying  my  pocket  Bible  open  on  the  central  stone,  three  burning 
candles  throwing  their  lustre  upon  it,  and  the  trowel,  square,  etc., 
resting  near  by,  a  few  opening  remarks  were  made  by  myself,  to  the 
effect  that  never,  so  far  as  I  knew,  had  a  Freemasons'  lodge  been 
formed  in  Jerusalem  since  the  departure  of  the  Crusading  hosts  more 
than  seven  hundred  years  ago;  that  an  effort  was  now  making  to 
introduce  Freemasonry  into  this,  the  mother-country  of  its  birth; 
that  a  few  of  us,  brethren,  providentially  thrown  together,  desired  to 
seal  our  friendship  by  the  associations  peculiar  to  a  Masonic  lodge ; 
that  for  this  purpose,  and  to  break  the  long  stillness  of  these  ancient 
quarries  by  Masonic  utterances,  we  had  now  assembled,  and  would 
proceed  to  open  a  Moot  Lodge,  under  the  title  of  Reclamation  Lodge 
of  Jerusalem.  This  we  now  proceeded  to  do,  in  a  systematic  .man- 
ner. A  prayer  was  offered,  echoing  strangely  from  that  stony  rock 
that  had  heard  no  such  sounds  for  centuries,  and  the  other  ceremo- 
nies proceeded. 

Remarks  were  offered,  very  feeling  and  appropriate,  by  the  venera- 
ble Henry  Petermann,  Prussian  Consul  at  Jerusalem,  a  member  of 
Royal  York  Lodge  at  Berlin,  a  Freemason  of  many  years'  experience. 
Brother  Peterman  is  the  deputy  of  his  Grand  Lodge  to  the  lodges 
o'  Palestine.  He  is  a  gentleman  of  great  learning  and  tbe  highest 


464  OPENING  THE  MOOT  LODGE. 

social  standing,  speaking  eight  languages  with  fluency.  He  expressed 
his  opinion,  in  the  plainest  terms,  that  the  times  were  propitious  foi 
reinstating  the  Masonic  institutions  in  the  Holy  Land. 

Brother  Petermann  was  followed  by  Brother  Captain  Charles  "War- 
ren, E.E.,  a  member  of  Friendship  Lodge  No.  278,  at  Gibraltar,  the 
learned  and  zealous  officer  who  has  charge  of  the  excavations  going 


JOHN  P.    BROWN, 
District  Grand  Master  at  Constantinople,  1872. 


Suddeuly,  without  warning,  the  spirit  of  their  genial  and  wise 
Brother  Brown,  to  whom  I  allude  on  page  599,  was  summoned 
"  by  the  God  who  gave  it."  He  died  of  heart-disease,  at  Con- 
stantinople, Sunday,  April  28,  1872.  I  had  received  a  communi- 
cation from  him  the  day  before,  and  was  preparing  a  reply  when, 
by  telegraph,  the  afflicting  intelligence  reached  me.  Freemasonry 
in  the  Turkish  Empire  has  no  Elisha  worthy  to  wear  the  mantle 
of  this  Elisha.  "  Alas,  the  chariot  of  Israel  and  the  horsemen 
thereof  1"  K.  M. 


SAYINGS  UNDER  GROUND. 

on  here  under  patronage  of  the  Palestine  Exploration  Fund.  This 
gentleman,  in  some  extremely  happy  observations,  expressed  his 
pleasure  at  this  meeting,  called  together  under  such  singular  cir- 
cumstances, and  was  equally  impressed  with  the  importance  of  intro- 
ducing Freemasonry,  though  cautiously  and  judiciously,  into  the 
Holy  Land. 

He  was  followed  by  my  assistant,  who  excelled  himself  in  clear 
and  forcible  expressions  of  the  importance  of  Freemasonry,  just  now, 
in  a  land  of  jarring  nationalities  and  religions  such  as  this  is.  Ho 
professed  a  willingness  to  do  any  part  in  the  introduction  and  re- 
establishment  of  the  society  here,  and  showed  how  much  of  the 
misery  to  which  this  country  has  been  subjected  might  have  been 
spared,  had  Freemasonry  existed  here  during  the  different  crises  of 
its  history. 

We  separated ;  and  endeavoring  to  return  to  the  entrance  through 
the  devious  and  interminable  passages  of  that  enormous  cavern,  lost 
our  way,  and  came  nigh  being  compelled  to  remain  there  until  our 
friends  would  search  for  us,  the  next  day. 

Then,  when  we  deemed  ourselves  lost  and  booked  for  a  long  night 
in  the  Great  Quarry,  we  groped  for  the  wall  like  the  blind ;  we  groped 
as  if  we  had  no  eyes;  we  stumbled  (Isaiah  lix.  10).  However,  by 
good  fortune,  this  evil  was  spared  us,  and  we  reached  the  City  Gate 
before  it  was  closed  at  sunset.  The  vast  quarry  thus  consecrated  by 
Masonic  forms,  shows  at  every  point  the  marks  of  the  chisel  as  well 
defined  as  the  day  the  workmen  left  it.  Slabs  of  stone  partially 
dressed  are  lying  upon  the  floor;  others,  partly  cut  out  of  the  wall 
stand  where  a  few  more  blows  would  detach  them.  Many  emblems 
of  crosses,  Hebrew  characters,  etc.,  remain,  and  the  next  visitor  will 
see  amongst  them  the  Square  and  Compass,  as  cut  by  our  hand. 

Associating  the  names  of  worthy  Masons  with  this  truly  Masonic 
locality,  I  unite  Henry  Petermann,  Nazif  Mesharka,  John  Oxland, 
Edward  Gladstone,  Rev.  J.  Every,  Lindesay  Goodrich,  Abdel  Kader, 
Samuel^allock,  E.  G.  Storer,  Noureddiu  Effendi. 

My  engraving  presents  a  correct  view  of  the  interior  of  these  exca- 
vations. 

The  following  drawing  of  the  Great  Stone  at  Baalbec,  whose  dimen- 
sions I  gave  in  a  preceding  chapter,  having  been  mislaid  at  the  proper 
time,  comes  in  appropriately  here. 

Further  notes  relative  to  researches  in  this  great  quarry  will  be 

interesting  to  the  general  reader. 

oU 


466 


WANDEKING   IN   DAKKNESS. 


This  enormous  excavation,  after  lying  for  many  ages  sealed  from 
the  knowledge  of  man,  was  accidently  discovered  by  Dr.  J.  T.  Bar- 
clay, about  the  year  1855.  His  dog  was  scenting  in  a  hole  under 


GREAT   STONE   AT   BAALBEC. 

the  city  wall,  and  suddenly  disappeared.  This  led  Dr.  Barclay  to 
imagine  that  there  might  be  a  quarry  or  cave  worth  exploring  there. 
By  enlarging  the  opening  with  a  spade,  he  found  his  conjectures 
verified.  A  few  years  ago,  quite  an  opening  was  made  for  the  accoir 
modation  of  an  English  party,  and  now  it  is  an  every-day  matter  for 
visitors  to  enter  and  inspect  the  quarry. 

In  my  drawing  of  it,  the  light  portions  show  where  the  stone  has 
been  removed,  the  dark  portions  where  it  was  left  in  great  natural 
columns  to  support  the  roof.  But  in  spite  of  these  large  and  frequent 
supports,  this  white  limestone  is  so  soft  before  it  has  been  exposed  to 
the  air  and  light,  that  large  pieces  are  constantly  falling  from  the 
roof  and  accumulating  in  great  heaps  upon  the  floor.  In  entering 
the  quarry  we  first  went  east  one  hundred  and  thirteen  feet,  as 
marked  upon  the  map,  then  directly  south  four  hundred  feet,  then 
southeast  one  hundred  and  ninety-six  feet.  Here  is  the  deep  circu- 
lar pit  in  which  Dr.  Barclay  discovered  a  human  skeleton — some  poor 
wretch,  no  doubt,  who  became  bewildered  in  the  windings  of  the 


INTEEIOE   OF   THE   GKEAT   QUAKJIY. 


STONE-MAEKS   AT   JEEUSALEM. 


EXQUISITE   GEM-CARVING. 


468  HENBY    PETERMAirtr. 

great  cave,  and  fell  in  unawares.  With  an  abundant  supply  of  can- 
dles, however,  we  turned  northward  around  the  pit,  and  went  two 
hundred  and  seventy  feet,  where  the  excavation  seemed  to  end  ab- 
ruptly. Near  the  circular  pit  is  a  small  basin  chiselled  in  the  rock, 
about  five  feet  in  diameter,  and  two  and  a  half  feet  deep,  into  which 
the  water  was  anciently  collected  for  the  use  of  the  workmen.  We 
found  it  full  and  running  over  ;  but  the  water  is  bitter  and  disagree- 
able to  the  taste. 

That  this  great  cavity  is  a  quarry,  and  not  a  natural  cave,  is  plain 
enough,  both  from  the  general  appearance  of  it  and  from  the  marks 
of  the  chisel  on  every  side.  The  floor  is  piled  deep  with  clippings 
made  by  working  implements.  Along  the  sides  of  the  quarry,  deep, 
narrow  grooves  were  cut  lengthwise  between  the  blocks,  some  of 
which  were  unusually  large,  and  these  were  then  burst  off  by  long 
levers  or  some  other  mechanical  contrivances.  Magnificent  halls 
were  formed  in  this  manner,  while  innumerable  chambers  and  re- 
cesses stretch  away  to  the  right  and  left,  showing  that  the  rock  was 
worked  wherever  it  was  found  best  in  quality. 

Dr.  R  W.  Stewart  (in  the  "  Tent  and  Khan")  considers  tnis  quarry 
one  of  the  most  interesting  discoveries  yet  made  in  Jerusalem.  It 
proves  that  the  great  blocks  seen  in  the  walls  of  Mount  Moriah  were 
not  brought  from  the  very  great  distance  formerly  supposed,  but 
from  a  place  upon  the  continuation  of  the  same  mountain.  This 
quarry  being  higher  than  the  top  of  the  platform  on  which  the  Tem- 
ple stood,  it  was  easy  to  roll  the  heavy  stones  down  the  inclined  plane 
to  their  places.  It  proves,  too,  from  its  vast  capacity,  how  much  stone 
was  used  in  the  various  structures  connected  with  Solomon's  architec- 
ture. 

Great  numbers  of  bats  were  clinging  to  the  roof  of  the  quarry, 
which  in  places  is  forty  feet  high.  Bones  of  various  kinds,  brought 
in  here  probably  by  jackals,  prove  the  use  to  which  the  great  cavern 
has  been  turned.  Numerous  crosses  are  traced  upon  the  wall,  indi- 
cating that  Christians,  probably  Crusaders,  had  been  here ;  and  a  few 
Hebrew  and  Arabic  inscriptions,  too  much  effaced  to  be  readable,  may 
be  seen. 

The  history  of  Dr.  Petermann  is  full  of  interest    He  has  been  in 
the  Prussian  diplomatic  service  for  more  than  twoscore  years  at  Bag- 
dad, in  Egypt,  in  Asia  Minor,  and  other  quarters  of  the  globe.  I  found   . 
the  good  old  man  very  complimentary  in  his  appreciation  of  Amer- 
ica and  its  literature.    He  assured  me,  as  Brother  Warren  had  done,7 


THE   GERMAN   MASON.  468 

chat  American  authorities  on  Holy  Land  explorations  (Robinson's, 
Barclay's,  Thomson's)  are  reckoned  the  best  on  the  catalogue,  and 
said  that  Motley's  History  of  the  Netherlands  is  highly  popular  in 
Holland  and  Germany. 

This  venerable  Mason  and  Christian  gentleman  was  born  in 
Glauchan,  Saxony,  in  the  year  1801.  In  1815  he  went  to  the 
gymnasium  of  Schulpforte,  near  Naumburg,  and  in  1821  to  the 
University  of  Leipsic.  Here  he  studied  theology  four  years.  In 
1825  he  went  to  Berlin,  and  engaged  in  the  study  of  philosophy  (es- 
pecially Oriental  languages)  for  four  years.  In  1829  he  took  the 
degree  of  Doctor  in  philosophy.  In  1830  he  entered  upon  the  voca- 
tion of  an  academical  instructor.  In  1833  he  received  the  grade 
of  Professor  Extraordinary  in  the  Philosophical  Faculty.  In  1849 
he  became  a  member  of  the  Academy  of  Science  in  Berlin,  and  in 
1857  was  nominated  Doctor  in  Divinity  by  the  Theological  Faculty 
of  Greiswalde. 

During  the  years  1832-3  he  was  in  Venice,  studying  the  Armenian 
tongue.  In  1852-3  he  travelled  in  the  East,  remaining  for  a  consid- 
erable period  in  Damascus,  Jerusalem,  Nablous,  Cyprus,  Bagdad; 
then  four  months  in  Persia,  and  a  short  period  in  Egypt.  In  1868 
he  received  his  appointment  at  Jerusalem,  which,  however,  is  only 
temporary,  as  he  shortly  returns  to  Berlin,  to  spend  the  remainder 
of  his  days  in  quiet.  The  object  of  his  stay  in  Jerusalem  was  that 
he  might  study  the  Armenian  manuscripts  belonging  to  the  monastery 
of  the  Armenian  Patriachate  there,  a  collection  of  rare  interest  and 
value. 

As  a  Freemason,  Brother  Petermann  was  initiated  in  1825,  in  the 
Lodge  Frederick  William,  belonging  to  the  Royal  York  Grand  Lodge 
of  Friendship ;  received  the  degree  of  Fellow  Craft  the  same  year, 
and  that  of  Master  Mason  the  following  year.  About  the  year  1840 
he  was  advanced  to  the  fourth  Degree,  what  is  styled  in  that  system 
the  Degree  of  Knowledge;  similar,  probably,  to  our  Past  Master.  In 
his  own  Lodge  he  held  the  offices  first  of  "  Surveyor,"  finally  of 
Honorary  Master. 

In  the  Fourth  Degree  (Knowledge),  called  also  that  of  St.  An- 
drew, he  was  appointed  Surveyor,  then  Chief  Master  of  the  Lodge, 
and  in  the  "Innermost  Orient"  he  was  made  Substitute  Chief  Mas- 
ter. In  his  mother  Grand  Lodge  he  is  Representative  of  the  Grand 
Lodge  of  Germany  to  the  Orient. 

In  this  age  of  Masonic  skepticism  it  is  refreshing  to  have  this  tea- 


470  THE   WINDING    STAIRS. 

timony  over  the  signature  of  so  venerable  and  learned  a  man  as  Dr 
Petermann : 

"  If  you  will  have  a  confession  of  my  opinion  upon  the  scope  of 
Masonry,  I  think  we  are  obliged  to  consider  it  as  a  mission  for  pro- 
moting true  Christianity.  Among  our  Christian  brethren  we  must 
promote  the  inner  mission  in  order  to  make  true  Christians.  Among 
the  Jews,  Mohammedans,  and  Heathens,  we  are  obliged  to  prepare 
the  work  for  the  Missionaries,  because  the  true  and  genuine  Mason, 
in  my  opinion,  must  be  a  true  and  genuine  Christian." 

In  the  course  of  a  social  evening  passed  with  that  learned  and 
experienced  Jerusalem  Missionary,  Dr.  J.  T.  Barclay,  prior  to  leaving 
the  United  States,  he  advised  me  to  give  special  attention  to  an 
object  of  rare  Masonic  interest,  found  near  the  Damascus  Gate  in 
Jerusalem.  This  is  a  true  pattern  of  the  Winding  Stairs,  so  mi- 
nutely wrought  out  in  the  lectures  of  the  Fellow  Craft.  Upon  my 
arrival  here  I  made  two  visits  to  this  singular  structure,  and  exam- 
ined it  minutely.  It  is  situated  on  the  right-hand  or  eastern  room 
of  the  Damascus  Gate,  and,  as  Dr.  Barclay  says,  "  is  connected  with 
the  best  specimens  of  ancient  Jewish  mural  structures  that  the  bat- 
tering-ram and  tooth  of  time  have  spared  to  us."  This  winding 
stairway  commences  on  the  left  and  leads  to  the  top  of  the  tower. 
It  is  not  contained  in  a  circular  tube,  as  in  modern  buildings  and  the 
ordinary  Masonic  pictures,  but  is  square-shaped,  each  step  being 
about  seven  feet  long  and  three  broad,  and  built  in  the  body  of  the 
structure.  After  passing  through  it,  I  am  quite  of  the  opinion 
expressed  by  Dr.  Barclay  that  this  was  the  kind  of  ascent  by  which, 
as  the  inspired  historian  says,  "  they  went  up  with  winding  stairs  into 
the  middle  chamber,  and  out  of  the  middle  into  the  third,"  situated 
in  the  southern  wing  of  the  Temple  porch  (1  Kings  vi.  8). 

Without  drawings  it  is  difficult  to  make  this  ingenious  device  clear 
to  the  reader;  but  I  can  assure  him  I  saw  but  few  remains  of  ancient 
architecture  about  Jerusalem,  or  anywhere  else,  so  well  worthy  of 
study  as  this.  Upon  a  plain  surface  near  the  top  I  chiselled  the 
Square  and  Compass. 

All  attempts  made  by  me  to  increase  the  number  of  Lodges  in 
Palestine  and  Syria,  under  English  authority,  failed.  The  Grand 
Lodge  of  England  does  not,  masonically,  know  any  Mason  not 
enrolled  upon  her  own  Grand  Lodge  Register ;  and  no  matter  how 
numerous  the  petitioners  or  how  respectable  the  petitions  we 
prepared  and  forwarded,  from  Damascus  and  elsewhere,  thev  were 


SOLOMON'S  LODGE  OF  JERUSALEM.  471 


thrown  out  in  London  "for  want  of  jurisdiction."  The  Grand  Orient 
of  France  issued  a  warrant  for  a  second  Lodge  at  Beyrout,  and  that, 
up  to  1872,  was  the  only  result  of  my  labors  in  this  direction.  At 
the  issuance  of  the  present  volume,  however  (April,  1872),  a  measure 
is  on  foot,  with  the  best  prospects  of  success,  to  organize  The  Solo- 
mon's Lodge  at  Jerusalem  under  American  auspices. 

Brother  R.  Beardsley,  United  States  Consul  in  Jerusalem,  and  a 
member  of  the  Order  at  Elkhart,  Indiana,  is  at  work,  with  great 
energy,  backed  up  by  a  strong  feeling  here  and  in  America,  to  ac- 
complish an  end  desirable  in  itself  and  particularly  so  at  the  pres- 
ent time — the  establishment  of  the  Masonic  Order,  on  a  legal  and 
permanent  basis,  in  the  city  of  its  origin.  The  points  presented  to 
the  Masonic  authorities  of  America  and  Europe,  in  justification  of 
this  movement,  are  these : 

The  Turkish  Empire,  masonically  considered,  is  neutral  ground  : 
to  prove  this  we  show  that  the  Grand  Lodges  of  England,  Scotland, 
France,  and  Italy  (perhaps  others),  have  exercised  the  right  to  estab- 
lish Lodges  there. 

The  General  Grand  Chapter  of  the  United  States  have  entered 
that  field  in  establishing  St.  John's  R.  A.  Chapter  in  Smyrna,  Asia 
Minor. 

Our  Consul  at  Jerusalem,  who  will  be  the  W.  M.,  is  an  American, 
and  so  will  be  at  least  one  other  petitioner.  They  wish  to  work  the 
American  Constitution  and  Rituals. 

The  petitioners  will  be  personally  vouched  for  by  a  resident  Mason 
in  Kentucky,  as  to  standing  and  proficiency. 

No  Lodge  Avill  be  asked  for  a  recommendation,  because  the  nearest 
Lodges  are  at  Beyrout,  150  milesr  and  the  two  Lodges  there,  at  the 
present  time,  are  inert.  But  we  can  get  the  recommendation  of 
American  Lodge,  if  the  technicality  is  insisted  on. 

The  rituals  to  be  worked  are  the  "  Webb  Rituals,"  translated  into 
Arabic. 

As  a  pleasant  summary  of  Jerusalem  notes,  I  conclude  the  chapter 
with  a  letter  written  shortly  after  my  return  from  the  East,  and  while 
my  mind  was  warm  with  Oriental  life  and  reflections.  Some  repeti- 
tion of  facts  already  introduced  will  not  be  considered  a  blemish  in 
the  epistolary  style. 

The  guide-books  with  which  I  have  already  advised  you  to  provide 
yourself  are  so  full  and  explicit  in  relation  to  "Jerusalem  the 
Golden,"  that  it  would  be  surplusage  for  me  to  offer  to  pilot  you 
around  the  city.  If  you  can  possibly  procure  a  copy  of  Barclay's 


472  HOLY   MUMMERIES. 

"  City  of  the  Great  King,"  and  study  it  before  you  leave  "  the  land 
of  the  free,"  do  so ;  it  is  incomparably  the  best  book  upon  the  subject. 
You  will,  however,  have  to  go  to  a  public  library  for  it,  as  the  book 
is  out  of  print  and  excessively  scarce.  Dr.  Robinson's  "Biblical 
Researches"  will  never  be  obsolete  in  relation  to  Jerusalem,  and  you 
must  not  fail  to  peruse  that  portion.  Thomson's  "  Land  and  Book" 
is  reliable  in  every  part.  Other  works  are  full  of  this  subject;  it 
can  never  become  stale.  Be  sure  to  post  yourself  up  before  you  go 
there. 

And  here  let  me  warn  you  against  putting  any  faith  whatever  in 
the  lamentable  mummery  with  which  the  convents  at  Jerusalem  and 
elsewhere  abound.  The  so-called  "  holy  places "  about  Jerusalem, 
Bethlehem,  and  Nazareth  have  not  a  particle  of  foundation  to  stand 
upon.  Their  history  is  mostly  modern,  and  where  it  claims  anything 
of  antiquity,  it  is  so  mixed  up  with  fable  that  the  safest  belief  is 
unbelief.  The  best  guide  through  the  lands  of  the  Bible  is  the  Bible ; 
and  as  an  old  writer  said,  "  The  delight  afforded  by  the  internal 
evidences  of  truth  will  surpass  all  that  can  be  anticipated."  Such 
extraordinary  instances  of  coincidence  even  with  the  customs  of  the 
country  as  they  are  now  exhibited,  and  so  many  wonderful  examples 
of  illustration  afforded  by  contrasting  the  simple  narrative  with  the 
appearances  presented,  will  fill  your  note-book  and  confirm  your 
faith  in  the  accuracy  of  the  narrative  itself.  The  Scriptures,  for 
instance,  guide  us  to  Bethlehem,  but  not  to  the  Cave  of  the  Nativity ; 
to  Gethsemane,  but  not  to  the  place  where  Jesus  knelt  in  agony  ;  to 
Olivet,  but  not  to  the  spot  from  which  Christ  ascended ;  to  Jerusa- 
lem, but  not  to  Golgotha.  Here  is  where  pious  men  materially  err, 
viz.,  in  trying  to  localize  too  minutely.  The  priests  encourage  them 
in  this,  because  it  brings  gold  and  fame  to  their  shrines.  They  pick 
out  a  place,  label  it  with  a  legend,  build  an  altar  and  a  chapel  over 
it,  and  henceforth  it  is  knelt  to  and  kissed  and  worshipped  ad  nauseum. 
A  disgusting  specimen  of  this  is  seen  in  the  so-called  Via  Dolorosa, 
or  road  by  which  Jesus  bore  his  cross  to  Calvary.  Now,  if  there  is  any 
one  thing  better  established  than  another,  it  is  that  the  Via  Doloros 
does  not  represent  the  road  that  Jesus  traversed;  for,  even  if  it 
follows  the  same  course,  the  road  stands  from  twenty  to  fifty  feet  at 
higher  level  than  it  did  1,800  years  ago,  in  consequence  of  the  enoi 
mous  accumulations  of  debris  that  have  filled  up  the  Tyropoeon.  Ye 
the  priests  profess  to  show  every  station  along  the  Via  Dolorosa 
which  Jesus  fell,  arose,  fell  again,  was  presented  with  a  handkerchief, 


WORK   FOB  THE   TOURIST.  473 

was  relieved  by  Simon  of  Gyrene,  etc.,  etc. ;  and  the  stone  wall  opposite 
each  of  those  "  Sacred  Stations"  is  annually  kissed  by  thousands  of 
pilgrims  until  great  holes  are  actually  worn  in  them  by  the  pressure 
of  pious,  well-meaning,  but  grossly-deluded  lips. 

My  counsel  is,  prepare  an  agenda  before  you  reach  Jerusalem  of 
what  you  will  visit,  and  adhere  to  it  rigidly,  turning  from  it  neither 
to  the  right  nor  to  the  left.  In  this  agenda  include,  among  other 
objects,  the  following: 

1.  Visit  the  Ancient  Tower  near  Jaffa  Gate. 

2.  Walk  on  top  of  the  wall  from  Jaffa  Gate  to  St.  Stephen's  Gate, 
around  the  north  side  of  the  city. 

3.  Carefully  examine  the  ancient  constructions,  the  winding  stair- 
way, etc.,  at  Damascus  Gate.     See  whether  the  Square  and  Compass 
remains  where  I  cut  it  in  the  wall  at  the  top  of  the  winding  stairs. 

4.  Take  a  whole  day  to  visiting  the  old  Temple  platform.    No 
matter  if  the  guide  wants  you  to  leave  in  an  hour;  yon  pay  for  a 
ivhole  day,  and  every  hour  you  lose  will  cause  you  subsequent  regret. 
Descend  into  the  Great  Cistern  at  the  southern  side  of  the  platform. 
Take  a  candle  and  wade  clear  through  it. 

5.  Take  enough  leisure  to  scan  closely  the  whole  vast  wall  forming 
the  eastern  supports  of  the  platform.     Don't  hurry.    Have  a  small 
chisel  and  mallet,  and  when  you  see  a  stone  of  peculiar  value,  quietly 
chip  off  a  few  preservation  crumbs  (but  don't  let  the  soldiers  who  are 
overhead  see  you,  or  you  may  never  leave  Jerusalem !)     See  if  my 
Square  and  Compass  is  chiselled  plainly  near  the  southeast  corner, 
where  I  indented  it  at  the  peril  of  my  life. 

6.  Visit  Olivet.     Best  begin  at  Scopus  early  in  the  morning,  and 
take  a  day  on  foot  to  the  journey  round  Olivet,  across  the  Kedron  at 
Ain  Joab,  climb  the  Mount  of  Evil  Counsel  at  Aceldama,  and  so  on, 
clear  round  by  the  hilltops  to  the  Damascus  Gate,  where  you  went 
out.     Such  a  day's  memory  will  abide  forever. 

7.  Visit,  with  a  guide,  the  great  quarry  under  the  city.    If  possible, 
get  Captain  Warren,  of  the  Royal  Engineers,  to  accompany  you  and 
show  you  where  a  few  of  us  "  good  fellows "  opened  a  Freemason's 
Lodge  in  that  midnight  stillness  and  darkness.    Perhaps  Dr.  Peter- 
man  n,  the  Prussian  Consul,  will  also  go  with  you— a  noble  old  man, 
and  a  true  and  faithful  brother. 

8.  At  a  convenient  day,  secure  Captain  Warren's  company  to  guide 
you  through  the  excavations  made  under  his  guidance  by  the  London 
Palestine  Exploration  Fund.    He  will  doubtless  furnish  you  with 


474  HATED   AND   CONCEALED. 

printed  descriptions.  Although  he  will  say  nothing  to  you  about 
the  matter,  yet  the  enterprise  needs  funds,  and  you  ought  to  contrib- 
ute a  sovereign  at  least  to  the  work.  You  will  be  astonished  at  the 
amount  of  excavation  done,  at  the  evidences  presented  of  the  gigantic 
plans  of  former  ages  now  being  exhumed.  As  one  of  the  London 
members  said :  "  Discoveries  have  been  made  of  the  utmost  import- 
ance, leading  to  the  hope  that  before  long  sufficient  data  will  be 
obtained  for  forming  a  tolerably  accurate  opinion  upon  the  various 
sites  in  the  Holy  City  which  had  been  so  long  matters  of  dispute. 
The  actual  streets  of  the  ancient  city  have  been  reached,  underground 
passages  have  been  brought  to  light,  and  a  complicated  network  of 
drains  and  reservoirs  laid  bare."  You  will  find  Captain  Warren  to 
be  as  thoroughly  posted  and  energetic  as  he  is  modest  and  diffident. 

9.  In  going  round  the  city  by  way  of  "  the  rim  of  the  basin"  of 
the  hills  that  overlook  Jerusalem,  look  carefully  for  the  place 
masonically  known  as  "  Hiram's  Pulpit."  The  tradition  is  that 
when  King  Solomon  held  his  first  conference  with  that  celebrated 
artist,  Hiram,  the  Widow's  Son,  he  took  him  to  a  place  near  the 
conjunction  of  the  two  eminences,  now  known  as  the  Mount  of 
Offence  and  Mount  Olivet,  situated  nearly  upon  the  prolongation  of 
Mount  Moriah,  and  pointed  out  the  spot  where  he  designed  to  erect 
the  Temple.  You  will  recognize  the  place  by  a  large  flat  rock  with 
a  cave  under  it,  and  an  old  olive-tree  just  below.  "  Hiram's  Pulpit," 
in  connection  with  the  myth  that  embodies  it,  is  one  of  the  sacred 
places  of  Freemasons'  travels. 

Looking  inquiringly  from  "Hiram's  Pulpit"  up  the  slope  of 
Mount  Moriah,  as  if  in  search  of  the  vast  Temple  described  by  Jose- 
ph us,  we  may  reflect  that  the  one  part,  the  marble,  was  earth,  and 
went  to  the  earth ;  the  other  part,  the  cedar,  was  of  the  atmosphere, 
and  went  to  vapor  under  the  torches  of  Titus'  legions.  The  former 
lies  there  yet  in  the  great  piles  that  conceal  one  half  the  face  of  the 
old  platform  wall,  and  contain  countless  relics  of  the  coins,  the 
marbles,  the  weapons,  and  the  bones  of  those  who  gave  their  lives 
to  their  country  on  that  fearful  night  of  the  capture.  The  latter 
returned,  perhaps,  to  Lebanon,  to  enter  through  the  foliage  of  the 
cedars  into  the  great  trees  that  shall  glorify  those  historic  shrines. 
Such  thoughts  as  these  not  only  serve  to  identify  important  locali- 
ties, but  to  surround  them  with  a  halo  of  glorious  associations  that 
survive  all  ordinary  memories  of  the  Holy  Land. 

10    V'sit  the  Tomb  of  the  Kings  on  the  north  side  of  Jerusalem, 


A   SERMON   ON   MORIAH.  475 

also  other  of  the  vast  tombs  with  which  "the  hills  round  about 
Jerusalem"  are  so  honeycombed. 

Listening  at  sunset  to  the  solemn  cry  of  the  muezzm  from  the 
minaret  in  "  the  Sacred  Enclosure  "  of  Mount  Moriah,  you  will  be 
interested  in  reading  a  copy  of  the  first  sermon  preached  on  Mount 
Moriah,  by  a  Mohammedan  priest,  on  the  Friday  after  the  capture 
of  Jerusalem  by  Saladin,  in  1187.  The  priest  ascended  the  pulpit, 
read  all  those  passages  from  the  Koran  which  contain  aspirations  of 
praise  to  God,  and  then  delivered  the  following  Klothbek  or  Sermon : 

"  Praise  to  God,  who  by  his  aid  hath  glorified  Islamism ;  by  his 
power  hath  debased  polytheism ;  by  his  will  rules  the  affairs  of  the 
world ;  prolongs  divine  blessings  according  as  we  show  gratitude  for 
them ;  by  his  wisdom  defeats  infidels ;  gives  power  to  dynasties 
accustomed  to  his  justice;  by  his  goodness  reserves  future  life  to 
those  who  fear  him ;  extends  his  shadow  over  his  servants ;  causes 
his  religion  to  triumph  over  all  others ;  gains  an  irresistible  victory 
over  his  servants ;  triumphs  in  his  caliph  without  any  one  being 
able  to  stay  him ;  orders  what  he  wills  against  all  objectors  ;  judges 
according  to  his  own  pleasure,  and  no  one  is  able  to  avert  the  execu- 
tion of  his  decrees. 

"  I  praise  this  God  for  having,  by  his  assistance,  rendered  his  elect 
victorious ;  for  the  glory  he  has  given  them ;  for  the  end  he  has  granted 
to  his  defenders.  I  praise  him  for  having  purified  the  polluted 
house  from  the  impieties  of  polytheism.  I  praise  him  with  soul  and 
body.  I  give  testimony  that  this  God  is  the  only  God ;  that  he  has 
no  associate ;  the  only  one ;  the  eternal  one,  who  begets — is  not 
begotten,  and  has  no  equal.  I  give  testimony  that  Mohammed  is  his 
servant  and  his  messenger ;  this  prophet  who  has  removed  doubts  ; 
confounded  polytheism;  extinguished  falsehood;  who  travelled  by 
night  from  Medina  to  Jerusalem^  who  ascended  into  the  heavens,  and 
reached  even  the  cedar  Almontchy.  May  the  eternal  felicity  of  God 
be  with  him  and  with  Abon  Bekr,  Alsadic,  etc. 

"0  men!  publish  the  extraordinary  blessing  by  which  God  haa 
made  easy  to  you  the  recapture  and  deliverance  of  this  city  which 
we  had  lost ;  and  has  made  it  again  the  centre  of  Islamism,  after 
having  been,  during  one  hundred  y«ars,  in  the  hands  of  the  infidels. 

"  This  house  was  built  and  its  foundations  laid  for  the  glory  of 
God  and  in  the  fear  of  Heaven.  For  this  house  is  the  dwelling  of 
Abraham;  the  ladder  of  your  prophet  (peace  be  with  him);  the 
Kiblah  to  which  you  prayed  at  the  commandment  of  Islamism ;  the 


476  EFFEMINATE  TOURISTS. 

abode  of  prophets ;  the  aim  of  saints ;  the  place  of  revelation  ;  the 
habitation  of  order  and  defence.  It  is  situated  in  the  land  of  the 
gathering ;  the  arena  of  the  meeting.  It  is  of  this  blessed  land  that 
God  speaks  in  his  precious  book.  It  was  in  this  mosque  that 
Mohammed  prayed  with  the  angels  who  stand  in  the  presence  of 
God.  It  was  this  city  to  which  God  sent  his  servant,  his  messenger, 
the  word  which  he  sent  to  Mary.  The  prophet  he  honored  with  his 
mission  did  not  stray  from  the  words  of  his  servant.  For  God  said, 
"  The  Messiah  will  not  deny  that  he  is  the  servant  of  God.  God  has 
no  son,  and  has  no  other  God  with  him.  Certainly  they  are  im- 
pious, who  say  that  Messiah,  the  son  of  Mary,  was  God." 

It  is  unfortunate,  in  one  respect,  that  nearly  all  published  commu- 
nications concerning  the  Holy  Land  are  from  the  pens  of  the  clergy, 
These  gentlemen,  unaccustomed  to  physical  hardships,  give  pictures 
colored  with  hues  drawn  from  their  own  fancies,  rather  than  the  facts 
In  comparing  my  own  experiences  with  those  of  the  Reverend  this 
and  the  Keverend  that,  whose  books  fill  my  shelves,  I  marvel  to  see 
how  different  they  have  been.  The  enormous  "fatigues"  of  which 
they  speak  so  lamentably  as  the  harder  incidents  of  travel,  were 
simply  those  of  men  who  probably  never  mounted  a  horse  before 
The  "  dangers  of  travel "  are  simply  bosh.  The  "  noisy  contests"  of 
the  natives  are  only  clamors  in  their  own  unmusical  tongue  for 
backsheesh,  clamors  which  it  only  needs  a  sharp  and  stern  denial  to 
stop,  and  to  rid  one's  self  of  the  pack  at  a  word. 

It  chanced  to  me  just  now  to  open  a  letter  published  in  the  Cin- 
cinnati Gazette,  July,  1867,  a  copy  of  which  I  happened  to  have  with 
me,  and  this  tendency  to  describe  Oriental  travel  from  an  effeminate 
point  of  view,  is  so  manifest  in  it  and  in  all  his  series,  that  I  am 
prompted  to  say  a  word  upon  the  other  side  of  the  question.  The 
writer's  opinion  was  that  of  a  man  accustomed  to  a  quiet,  studious  life, 
dyspeptic  in  his  internal  arrangements,  to  whom  a  prancing  horse 
is  a  terror,  and  the  cry  of  a  jackal  at  midnight  as  a  voice  from  the 
dead.  Now  look  at  the  other  side.  Take  a  person  who  knows  how 
to  mount  *a  horse  from  the  left  side,  and  to  load  and  fire  a  pistol, 
one  who  is  in  the  habit  of  sleeping  soundly  after  a  hearty  supper,  and 
every  "  adventure"  described  by  the  reverend  gentleman  in  his  twenty- 
seventh  letter  is  but  the  commonest  frolic. 

And  the  most  erroneous  impression  conveyed  by  such  writers  is  in 
regard  to  the  expense  of  travel.  They  have  no  idea  that  a  man  can 
see  anything  in  the  Holy  Land  unless  he  has  a  dragoman,  with  tents,  an 


THE   CUESE   Of  DRAGOMANS.  477 

army  of  horses,  a  cuisine  or  kitchen  apparatus,  and  all  the  appliances 
of  civilized  life.  No  wonder  these  things  are  expensive.  No  wonder 
that "  eight  dollars  a  day  in  gold"  (equal  to  twelve  dollars  in  curreacy) 
scarcely  covers  the  bill.  And  no  wonder  that  the  tourist  hears  the  jackal 
scream  at  midnight,  and  sees  "blood  and  thunder"  upon  the  counte- 
nance of  every  Arab  he  meets.  Why,  look  at  it!  the  first  proposition 
made  you  by  one  of  these  first-elms  dragomen,  when  bargaining  with 
you,  is  that  he  will  give  you  "five  courses  for  dinner."  I  say,  look  at 
it !  A  dyspeptic  little  clergyman  gets  on  his  horse  at  Beyrout, 
almost  the  first  time  he  ever  straddled  one,  and  rides  eight  hours,  to 
the  vicinity  of  Sidon.  The  unwonted  motion  has  stimulated  his  appe- 
tite to  absolute  voracity,  but  without  increasing  the  amount  of  his 
gastric  juice  or  his  power  of  digestion.  Arrived  at  his  camping- 
ground,  he  waits  almost  crazed  with  hunger  until  eight  or  even  nine 
o'clock  at  night  for  his  dinner, for  "five  courses"  cannot  be  prepared 
in  a  minute.  When  it  comes,  the  poor  fellow,  half-witted  by  starva- 
tion, eats  a  meal  of  soup,  fish,  meats,  and  dessert,  that  a  healthy  plough- 
man could  scarcely  digest,  and  immediately  afterward,  worn  out  by 
fatigue  and  the  intolerable  delay,  goes  to  bed,  to  contend,  through 
a  long  night,  with  nightmare  and  apoplexy.  Does  not  he  get  his 
eight  dollars'  worth  ?  No  wonder  he  hears  the  jackals ! 

Read  the  works  of  ninety-nine  travellers  out  of  a  hundred  who 
"  do  the  Holy  Land,"  and  would  not  the  reader  suppose  that  there 
is  only  one  way  to  visit  the  Holy  Land  ? — that  you  must  pay  a 
dragoman  to  kill  you  with  dyspepsia — to  drag  you  hither  and  thither 
at  his  pleasure — to  lie  to  you  from  hour  to  hour,  and  pass  off  his  im- 
pudence for  bravery  ?  I  vow  that  when  I  have  heard  and  seen  the 
things  to  which  travellers  submit  in  this  country  from  their  hired 
servants,  I  have  felt  that  in  emancipating  American  slaves,  public 
opinion  stopped  only  half-way  :  the  slavery  to  dragomen  is  worse. 

Do  you  ask  how,  then,  the  tourist  should  proceed  to  get  the  proper 
information  and  see  the  country  ?  I  reply,  very  much  the  same  as 
he  would  at  home.  The  only  differences  are  that  if  he  cannot  speak 
the  language,  he  must  have  an  interpreter;  as  there  are  no  public 
conveyances,  he  must  hire  his  own  horses ;  and  as  there  are  some 
places  where  accommodations  are  scanty,  he  should  take  his  own 
blankets  and  a  moderate  supply  of  provisions.  He  needs  no  expen- 
sive dragoman,  or  tents,  or  cuisine,  or  any  nonsense  of  the  sort.  If 
he  travels  alone,  which  is  perfectly  safe  and  pleasant,  he  wants  an  in- 
telligent fellow  who  knows  enough  English  to  give  him  the  names  of 


478  AN   INCIDENT. 

places,  etc.,  and  is  willing  to  be  his  servant.  Two  horses  carry  him 
and  the  servant,  while  a  pack-mule  carries  his  two  pair  of  blankets 
and  supply  of  provisions,  say  for  a  week  ahead.  With  a  good  fowl- 
ing-piece for  game,  a  good  reference  Bible  in  his  pocket,  an  easy 
3onscience  and  digestion,  a  man  may  thus  see  the  Holy  Land  upon  three 
dollars  a  day,  and  fare  like  a  (Syrian)  lord.  If  three  such  travellers 
go  together,  it  need  not  cost  them  more  than  two  dollars  a  day  for  each. 

And  the  great  advantage  of  this  plan  is,  you  can  go  ivhere  you 
please.  Now,  a  dragoman  will  not  permit  that.  Either  by  the 
broadest  lying  or  by  sheer  bullying,  he  takes  you  where  he  pleases. 
You  start  when  he  bids  you,  go  just  so  long  as  he  directs 
you,  and  halt  for  night-quarters  wherever  he  decides  that  you 
•should.  For  instance,  I  left  Jerusalem  May  14,  about  3  P.M., 
designing  to  pass  through  Bethel.  There  was  not  a  dragoman 
in  Jerusalem  who  could  (or  would)  tell  me  where  Bethel  is. 
They  only  know  Rameleh,  a  few  miles  west  of  it,  and  the  secret 
of  their  ignorance  is  that  there  is  a  convent  at  Rameleh  where  they 
always  stop.  But  I  found  Bethel  by  the  map,  and  spent  the  night  at 
Bethel.  And  I  don't  know  of  a  prettier  route  for  a  few  days  than  to 
stroll  through  the  country  between  Bethel  and  the  Jordan  valley, 
tracing  out  the  ancient  localities  of  Ai,  Rimmon,  Shiloh,  and  others, 
that  in  the  imagination  of  a  dragoman  are  but  fabulous  places. 

There  is  no  difficulty  in  contriving  a  route  from  one  end  of  the 
Holy  Land  to  the  other,  so  as  to  secure  accommodations  at  convents 
and  respectable  native  houses  nine  nights  out  of  ten. 

A  stout  man  could  make  a  pleasant  walking  excursion  through 
Palestine  at  the  most  trifling  expense.  Were  I  twenty  years  younger, 
there  is  nothing  I  would  sooner  undertake  than  to  make  up  a  party 
of  good  legs  and  sound  stomachs,  and  shoulder  a  knapsack  with  them  for 
a  six-weeks  excursion  among  the  sacred  hills  and  valleys.  There  was 
a  man  at  Jerusalem  this  Spring  who  was  doing  this  very  thing — do- 
ing it  alone — and  doing  it  with  an  ease  and  safety  that  put  to  blush 
the  colored  fancies  of  those  writers  who  are  bent  upon  convincing 
the  world  that  the  days  of  Marco  Paulo  have  returned  again,  because 
they  heard  a  jackal  scream,  or  saw  an  Arab  with  a  twelve-foot  spear- 
handle  that  could  be  used  offensively  about  as  easy  as  an  old-fash- 
ioned arquebuse. 

More  than  six  hundred  years  have  passed  since  the  Holy  City  was 
visited  by  an  Emperor,  the  difference  between  the  two  visits  being 
very  remirkable:  in  the  one  instance,  Frederick  II.  of  Germany  took 


TISIT   OF   AN   EMPEBOR.  479 

the  city  from  the  Moslems  by  force  of  arms  about  the  year  1230 ;  and 
in  the  other  case  (1869),  Francis  Joseph  comes,  welcomed  and  feted  by 
the  followers  of  Mohammed,  every  attention  which  real  feeling  alone 
can  show  being  by  no  means  stinted,  and  this,  coming  from  a  people 
whose  religion  teaches  them  that  to  murder  Christians  is  a  sure  road 
to  heaven,  marks  the  progress  of  civilization  in  the  East.  The  Gov- 
ernor-General of  Syria,  Easchid  Pasha,  came  overland  all  the  way 
from  Damascus  to  Jaffa,  to  meet  the  Austrian  Emperor,  and,  consid- 
ering the  poor  resources  of  the  country,  entertained  his  Majesty  in  a 
most  princely  manner.  Eoads  were  made,  hills  were  levelled,  bazars 
and  streets  thoroughly  cleared  of  ages  of  lumber,  regardless  of  ex- 
pense, and  everything  was  done  to  show  that  the  honor  of  the 
Emperor's  visit  was  truly  appreciated. 

The  Emperor's  fleet  remained  off  Jaffa  nearly  the  whole  of  the 
night  of  the  7th  of  November,  so  as  to  be  ready  to  land  early  on  the 
morning  of  the  8th.  After  the  usual  salvos  of  cannon,  the  Emperor's 
boat  was  seen  approaching,  bearing  the  Austro-Hungarian  flag  in  its 
stern,  and  the  flag  of  the  House  of  Hapsburg  in  its  bow,  the  Gov- 
ernor-General awaiting  the  arrival  on  a  jetty  improvised  for  the 
occasion,  and  which  consisted  of  a  covered  passage  and  a  saloon  of 
reception,  decorated  with  oranges,  sugar-canes,  and  the  numerous 
products  of  the  country,  the  whole  being  covered  tent-fashion  with 
striped  red-and-white  silk,  the  production  of  the  looms  of  Damascus. 
The  streets  being  very  narrow  and  inconvenient  near  the  landing- 
place,  all  ceremony  was  dispensed  with  till  the  party  arrived  at  a 
camp  which  had  been  erected  by  the  Governor-General  among  the 
orange-groves  for  which  Jaffa  is  famous,  and  through  which  for 
nearly  two  miles  the  royal  party  had  to  be  conducted.  Here  the 
various  consuls  and  Turkish  officials  were  presented  to  the  Emperor, 
after  which  a  troup  of  some  six  hundred  Bedouins  performed  the 
various  exercises  for  which  these  Desert  savages  are  so  renowned. 
Charging  one  another  with  their  spears,  firing  their  muskets,  shout- 
ing and  yelling,  their  horses  twisting  and  turning  in  every  direction, 
combined  with  the  flashing  of  the  gay  colors  in  which'  they  were 
dressed,  they  presented  a  sight  to  be  seen  nowhere  but  in  the  East. 

The  Emperor,  dressed  in  a  gray  shooting-coat,  and  well  mounted 
on  a  splendid  Arab  belonging  to  the  Governor,  commenced  his  jour- 
ney with  fine  weather  and  a  sun  robbed  of  its  fierceness  by  light, 
fleecy  clouds ;  the  suite,  some  in  carriages  and  some  mounted,  follow- 
ing in  every  description  of  mufti  and  on  every  description  of  horse 


480  VISIT  OF   AN   EMPEROK. 

and  saddle,  from  the  well-made  pigskin  to  the  unmade  sheepskin. 
On  reaching  Rameleh,  luncheon  was  provided  by  the  staff  of  servants 
sent  expressly  by  the  Sultan  from  Constantinople,  all  of  whom  were 
particularly  chosen  because  they  spoke  German.  The  service  was 
entirely  of  silver  and  gold,  and  of  a  completeness  which  defies 
description,  every  possible  item,  even  to  carpets  and  bedding,  being 
sent  from  Constantinople  for  the  use  of  the  visitors.  After  refresh- 
ment the  journey  was  resumed,  and,  as  evening  drew  on,  lighted 
beacons  of  wood  and  bitumen  were  borne  by  men  in  front  of  the 
procession.  About  9  P.M.  the  royal  party  arrived  at  their  resting- 
place  for  the  night — a  splendid  camp,  which  was  placed  near  the 
village  of  Aboo  Ghosh. 

A  repast  of  every  delicacy  was  here  provided,  not  only  for  the 
Emperor's  and  Pasha's  suites,  but  for  all  the  troops  and  followers, 
which  numbered  nearly  two  thousand,  and,  the  night  being  dark, 
bonfires  ranged  in  every  direction,  making  the  scene  quite  a  gay  one. 

After  a  good  night's  rest,  the  Emperor  started  for  the  Holy  City  at 
8  A.M.,  and,  after  a  two-hours'  ride,  Koloniah  was  reached,  where 
the  royal  party  dismounted  and  changed  their  mufti  for  uniforms, 
which  are  not  only  simple,  but  exceedingly  becoming,  especially  the 
Hungarian  one,  in  which  many  of  the  suite  were  dressed. 

Koloniah  shows  many  ruins  of  Roman  architecture,  and  is  believed 
to  have  been  a  Roman  station  of  the  time  of  Adrian ;  the  traditions 
of  the  present  day,  however,  point  it  out  as  the  place  where  David 
slew  the  giant 

The  procession,  preceded  by  three  standard-bearers,  then  proceeded 
on  their  pilgrimage,  winding  up  the  last  steep  hill  which  hides  the 
Holy  City  from  sight,  and  every  eye  was  strained  as  the  summit 
was  being  neared,  to  catch  the  first  glimpse  of  Jerusalem.  The 
Emperor  dismounted  and  kissed  the  holy  soil  of  Palestine  the 
moment  the  city  came  in  sight,  and  in  eveiy  action  showed  that 
deep  emotion  stirred  his  soul.  Triumphal  arches  of  every  kind,  and 
priests  and  laity  of  every  known  religion  of  Europe  and  Asia, 
thronged  the  road,  from  time  to  time  cheering  as  lustily  as  Ori- 
entals, unused  to  the  "  hurrah ! "  could  do,  and  thus  the  city  was 
reached.  At  the  Jaffa  gate  the  horses  were  dismissed,  and  the  Latin 
Bishop  of  Jerusalem,  accompanied  by  a  crowd  of  priests,  read  an 
oration  in  Latin,  and  presented  a  crucifix  purposely  reserved  for 
kings,  for  the  Emperor  to  kiss;  the  guns  thundered,  and  the  Turk 
ish  bands  added  to  the  uproar,  as  the  procession  of  priests  and  mili 


VISIT   OF   Atf   EMPEROR. 


481 


tary  filed  slowly  away  down  the  streets  leading  to  the  Church  of  the 
Holy  Sepulchre,  where  the  Emperor  attended  high  mass,  and  visited 
the  tomb  of  our  Saviour. 

Two  facts  of  note  may  here  be  appropriately  noted :  firstly,  bj 
order  of  the  Emperor,  who,  though  religious,  is  liberal,  all  the  Pro- 
testant clergy  were  specially  invited ;  and  also  another  fact,  that  the 
Governor-General  of  Syria  and  other  Turks  were  present  during  the 
saying  of  mass  in  the  Church  of  St.  Sepulchre. 

The  city  was  splendidly  illuminated  in  the  evening,  the  Holy 
Sepulchre  and  the  Austrian  Consul's  being  the  most  remarkable 
Rockets,  Bengal  lights,  and  muskets  were  fired  the  greater  part  of 
the  night. 

The  next  day,  Bethlehem  and  other  places  of  interest  were  visited, 
and  on  the  llth  the  royal  party  left  for  the  Dead  Sea. 


HALF   SHEKEL   OF  SIMON.      MA.CCABAKUS   B.    C.    143 
31 


A  GROUP  OP  FLOWERS 

In  this  group  of  flowers,  collected  and  arranged  for  me  by  a 
Prussian  family  at  Jerusalem,  there  are  ten  specimens  gathered, 
at  ten  different  localities,  viz.:  1.  The  Shepherds*  Plain,  near 
Bethlehem.  2.  Rachel's  Tomb,  between  Bethlehem  and  Jerusa- 
lem. 3.  Bethany.  4.  Mount  Zion.  5.  Mount  Moriah.  6. 
The  Yalley  of  Jehoshaphat.  7.  Mount  Olivet.  8.  The  Valley 
of  Hinuom.  9.  The  Land  of  the  Kings.  10.  The  Garden  of 
Gethsemane. 

The  group  has  been  chromoed  by  Mr.  A.  L.  Murdoch,  of  Bos- 
ton, Mass.,  in  a  style  absolutely  incomparable. 


DIVISION  NINTH.-GALILEE  AND  DAMASCUS. 


Tis  long  ago,  yet  faith  in  our  souls 
Is  kindled  just  by  that  fire  of  coals 

That  streamed  o'er  the  mists  of  the  sea 
While  Peter,  girding  his  fisher's  coat. 
Went  over  the  nets  and  out  of  the  boat 
To  answer,  Lov'st  thou  me  y 
Thrice  over,  Lov'st  thou  me  ? 

Stabat  mater  dolorosa, 
Juxta  crucem  lacrymosa, 

Dura  pendebat  filiua ; 
Cujus  animam  gementem, 
Contristatem  et  dolentem, 

Per  transivit  gladius. 

O  quam  tristis  et  afflicta, 
Fuit  ilia  benedicta 

Mater  unigeniti  I 
Quae  moerebat,  et  dolebat, 
Pia  mater  dum  videbat, 

Nati  prenas  inclyte. 

Quis  est  homo  qui  non  fleret, 
Christi  matrem  si  videret, 

In  tan  to  supplicio  ? 
Quis  posset  non  contristari ; 
Piam  matrem  contemplari, 

Dolentem  cum  fiiio  f 

Pro  peccatis  suse  gentis, 
Vidit  Jesum  in  tormentis 

Et  flagellis  subditum  I 
Vidit  suum  dulceni  natum, 
Morientum,  desolatum, 

Dum  emisit  spiritunx. 


CHAPTER  XXV1L 
FROM  JACOB'S  WELL  TO  TIBERIAS. 

N  a  preceding  chapter  I  conducted  my  readers  as  far  as  to 
Jacob's  "Well.     Spending  a  night  in  Nablous,  as  there  ex- 
plained, I  went  on  Saturday,  a  very  hard  day's  journey,  to 
Shunem,  near  Nazareth.     It  was  my  purpose  to  reach  the 
latter  place  the  same  night,  but  the  distance  was  too  great, 
considering  the  terrific  mountain-paths  to  be  traversed  during  the 
first  part  of  the  journey. 

The  notes  of  the  day  are  numerous,  but  will  be  used  chiefly  to 
embellish  special  chapters.  Going  around  the  western  slope  of  Mount 
Ebal,  I  was  afforded  a  fine  view  of  Shechem  and  its  valley  from  Ja- 
cob's Well  to  Samaria.  No  monument  on  earth  is  better  identified 
than  Jacob's  Well ;  no  vale  is  more  fertile  than  Shechem. 

Nothing  puzzles  the  hearers  of  my  lectures  more  than  to  tell  them 
that  "everything  in  this  country  is  buried  up"  All  the  modern 
towns  here  are  standing  above,  many  of  them  high  above,  the  old 
towns.  Jerusalem  in  places  is  a  hundred  feet  above  old  Jerusalem. 
The  Tyre  of  Solomon's  days  is  twenty  to  fifty  feet  under  the  Tyre 
of  the  Metarvelies.  So  it  happens  that  to  reach  the  curb  of  Jacob's 
Well,  that  portion  on  which  the  wearied  MAN  "  sat  (John  iv.  6) 
about  the  sixth  hour,"  you  have  got  to  jump  down  some  six  feet. 
Just  so  in  visiting  N6tre  Dame,  at  Paris;  the  threshold  which, 
A.D.  1163,  was  eight  steps  above  the  street,  is  now  level  with  the 
street !  At  this  rate,  A.D.  3469,  it  will  be  seven  steps  below  the  street. 
The  Forum  of  Rome,  formerly  considerably  elevated  at  the  threshold, 
is  now  twelve  feet  below  the  pavement. 

The  explanation  as  to  Jacob's  Well  is  simple  enough :  the  stone  of 
this  country,  unlike  the  imperishable  granite  of  Egypt,  is  extremely 
friable.  The  walls  of  edifices  crumble  to  earth,  at  the  most,  in  a  few 
centuries,  and  the  dust  (earth)  thus  formed  accumulates  and  buries 


VALLEY   OF   SHECHEM.  485 

in  massive  layers  the  works  of  successive  generations.  Let  the  ob- 
server compute  the  amount  of  mud  in  the  streets  of  New  York  at 
the  end  of  the  winter  months,  and  imagine  it  unmoved  for  centuries ; 
the  piles  would  almost  overtop  the  houses. 

Jacob's  Well  is  only  referred  to  in  that  Gospel  (John)  whose  sim 
plicity,  naturalness,  and  vividness  in  the  entire  narrative  give  it  to 
many  readers  preference  over  the  whole  four.  No  wonder  Free 
Masons  have  desired  to  believe  that  St.  John  was  a  Mason,  a  patron 
of  Masons,  a  Grand  Master  Mason,  as  the  Scotch  would  call  him. 
In  mind,  spirit,  affection,  circumstances,  and  character,  he  was  sui 
generis. 

A  friend,  at  Joseph's  Tomb,  describes  a  group  under  his  eye — a 
white-bearded  Jew  kneeling  by  the  side  of  this  tomb,  and  telling  his 
three  little  grandsons,  kneeling  by  his  side,  the  affecting  story  of 
Joseph. 

The  valley  of  Shechem,  over  which  I  was  looking,  is  truly  "a 
watered  garden,  a  spring  of  water  that  faileth  not"  (Isaiah  Iviii.  11). 
The  soil,  as  a  writer  remarks,  is  "  apt  for  vines,  and  not  destitute  of 
corn." 

"  What  a  lovely  valley !"  says  another.  "  Well  did  the  wise  Mo- 
hammed say :  '  The  land  of  Syria  is,  above  all  lands,  beloved  of  God ; 
that  district  he  loves  the  best  is  the  portion  in  which  Jerusalem  lies ; 
the  best  of  that  portion  is  the  valley  of  Nablous,'"  at  whose  entrance 
are  the  Tomb  of  Joseph  and  the  Well  of  Jacob.  The  profits  of  the 
cotton  crop  for  three  years,  owing  to  the  American  war,  had  turned 
all  heads  in  the  Orient.  In  some  parts  they  went  wild  over  their 
prosperity,  making  silver  plowshares  and  cart-wheels.  The  general 
result  after  all  is  fayorable,  as  it  has  set  the  people  to  improving  their 
houses,  clothing,  and  habits.  Never  was  so  much  parlor  furniture 
and  kitchen  furniture  (the  same  thing)  used  in  Nablous  as  now; 
and  those  who  got  up  the  Civil  War  are  really  the  benefactors  of 
Nablous ! 

"  A  fair  and  fruitful  vale,"  says  an  old  pilgrim  ;  "  a  fair  and  good 
city  is  Nablous." 

A  lady  is  reported  as  having  collected  nearly  one  hundred  distinct 
specimens  of  flowers  in  a  morning's  walk  in  the  suburbs  of  Jerusalem. 
On  Carmel,  a  traveller  procured  forty-seven  varieties  of  flowers  in  a 
short  time.  Around  Nablous,  the  armies  of  plants  seem  innumer- 
able ;  its  olive-trees  and  almonds  appear  like  patriarchs  among  the 
younger  groves  of  figs,  pomegranates,  mulberries,  and  other  trees ; 


486  THE   ANEMONE. 

its  tall  cypresses  shoot  up  their  sombre  cones  as  if  anxious  to  peep 
over  Ebal  or  over  Gerizim.  It  is  a  vale  of  the  woods  as  well  as  the 
gardens.  This  is  the  only  place,  in  Palestine,  in  which  I  remarked 
my  old  American  acquaintance  the  mistletoe  (Phoradendron  flaves- 
cens),  the  plant  of  Druidical  fame,  which  always  suggests  the  tune 
of  Casta  Diva  to  my  mind.  Probably  I  am  the  only  man  who  ever 
attempted  to  sing  that  song  in  the  valley  of  Shechem  since  Jacob's 
time,  and  I  am  sure  I  failed  egregiously. 

Here  was  born,  about  A.D.  110,  that  eminent  divine,  Justin  Fla- 
vins Martyr,  who  was  endowed  with  an  intense  longing  for  knowl- 
edge in  divine  things,  even  from  early  youth.  He  was  martyred 
at  Rome,  A.D.  167. 

To  pass  away  from  Nablous  without  referring  to  the  lepers  would 
scarcely  be  rational.  The  mutilated  and  dreadful  appearance  of  these 
creatures  is  mournful  to  contemplate.  I  am  told  that  a  person  may 
live  a  lingering  death,  with  this  disease,  for  fifty  years !  One  writer 
calls  it  Lepra  Abrahami.  A  lady  writer  describes  it  as  a  sickening 
sight  to  look  at  these  loathsome  creatures,  their  fingerless  hands,  their 
handless  arms,  many  without  noses,  lips,  or  eyes,  every  possible  proof 
of  the  ravages  of  this  disease.  Among  my  last  views  was  that  of 
the  halt  and  maimed  and  blind ;  some  of  them  crawling  through  the 
streets  like  nondescript  monsters,  aided  by  elbows  and  hands ;  very 
many  of  them  blind,  and  sitting  by  the  wayside  begging,  or  calling, 
ragged,  filthy,  pitiable,  from  door  to  door. 

And  oh,  how  magnificently  does  the  anemone  paint  these  hillsides 
of  Ephraim  with  scarlet! — the  coy  anemone,  that  never  uncloses 
"  her  lips  'until  they're  blown  on  by  the  wind." 

The  Greeks  fancied  the  anemone  originally  a  nymph  beloved  by 
Zephyrus,  and  therefore  transformed  into  a  flower  by  the  jealous 
Flora.  If  so,  Flora,  for  once  in  her  life,  did  a  good  thing,  in  turning 
a  loose-minded  damsel  into  an  exquisite  flower !  Writers  attest  that 
the  plains  of  Asia  Minor  abound  in  the  scarlet,  purple,  and  lilac 
varieties  of  anemone.  I  saw  numbers  of  them  around  the  railway 
station  at  Brindisi,  Italy,  in  June,  1868.  A  noted  Persian  writer 
called  his  book  The  Garden  of  Anemones.  In  the  superstitious 
days  of  England  the  earliest  specimens  of  this  flower  were  religiously 
gathered  and  preserved  as  charms  against  pestilence,  being  wrapped 
in  scarlet  silk  and  worn  abrut  the  person.  Galilee,  for  the  abund- 
ance of  these  beautiful  flowers,  might  well  be  entitled  Phaselida,  or 
the  place  of  lilies ;  and  my  childhood's  favorite  poet,  Mrs.  Hemans, 
ought  to  have  been  here  when  she  wrote — 


CROSSING   MOUNT   EBAL.  48? 

*  Lilies,  when  the  Saviour's  calm,  benignant  eye 
Fell  on  your  gentle  beauty ;  when  from  you 
That  heavenly  lesson  for  all  hearts  He  drew, 

Eternal,  universal  as  the  sky  ; 

Then  in  the  bosom  of  your  purity 
A  voice  He  set  as  in 'a  temple-shrine, 

That  life's  quiet  traveller  ne'er  might  pass  you  by, 
Un warned  of  that  sweet  oracle  divine; 

And  though  too  oft  its  low,  celestial  sound 

By  the  harsh  notes  of  work-day  care  is  drowned, 
And  the  loud  steps  of  vain,  unlistening  haste, 

Yet  the  great  lesson  hath  no  tone  of  power 

Mightier  to  heart  and  soul,  in  thought's  hushed  hour, 
Thau  young,  meek  lilies  chosen  thus  and  crowned !" 

An  old,  hoary-bearded  resident,  squatted  on  his  housetop,  was  look- 
ing over  the  beautiful  valley,  a  proper  figure  in  such  a  scene ;  and 
then,  as  I  passed  around  the  point  of  the  mountain,  the  valley  was 
shut  from  my  sight.  Samaria,  five  miles  to  the  west,  appeared  shrunk 
like  a  shrivelled  gourd,  dismantled  and  dismembered.  How  thickly 
all  this  country  was  once  settled  and  what  a  population  it  supported 
may  be  inferred  from  the  statement  that  Joshua  captured  600  towns, 
in  one  of  which,  Ai,  12,000  persons  were  slain,  and  tbat  "  Gibeon 
was  greater  that  Ai." 

A  few  miles  of  mountain  travel,  and  I  observed  the  sun  beating 
with  meridian  splendor  upon  the  valleys,  driving  the  people  to  seek 
shelter  from  its  scorching  rays  in  their  miserable  huts.  Among  the 
associations  of  these  mountains  not  the  least  are  those  connected 
with  the  Prophet  Elijah,  always  an  object  of  interest  to  the  Biblical 
writer.  It  was  a  joy  to  read  here  what  an  English  writer  says  of  the 
wonderful  man  :  "His  rare,  sudden,  and  brief  appearances ;  his  un- 
daunted courage  and  fiery  zeal ;  the  brilliancy  of  his  triumph  and 
pathos  of  his  despondency ;  the  glory  of  his  departure,  and  the  calm 
beauty  of  his  reappearance  on  the  Mount  of  Transfiguration,  throw 
such  a  halo  of  brightness  around  him  as  is  equalled  by  none  of  his 
compeers  in  the  sacred  story." 

About  two  o'clock,  I  stopped  for  an  hour  at  a  charming  spring  of 
water  near  a  village  whose  name  I  have  not  preserved.  Surely  there 
breathes  not  a  people  more  savage  and  nasty,  crusted  with  dirt,  and 
smelling  of  smoke,  by  reason  of  the  manure  used  for  fuel  in  the 
houses  that  have  no  chimneys.  While  thus  enjoying  my  noonday 
lunch,  the  whole  village  stood  around  me :  whenever  I  raised  my 
elbow  or  opened  my  mouth  they  sympathetically  did  the  same,  seem- 


488  PLAIN   OF   ESDRAELON. 

ing,  in  imagination,  to  devour  every  morsel  that  I  did.  I  found  he.e 
in  the  filth  an  elegant  petrifaction  of  the  star-fish,  similar  to  the  one 
I  had  discovered  at  Bethel.  This  is  averred  by  competent  authority 
to  be  the  most  regular  and  geometric  in  form  of  all  created  things ; 
it  is  certainly  the  only  handsome  object  I  saw  in  Bethel.  "  The 
Divine  Geometer  who  conceived  it,"  says  a  vigorous  author,  "never 
realized  a  creature  more  regularly  formed  in  shape,  more  perfectly 
harmonious  in  symmetry." 

Coming  near  the  plain  of  Esdraelon,  Joseph's  Pit  at  Dothan  sug- 
gested itself  to  my  mind.  What  a  history  lay  between  the  boy  in 
the  pit  at  Dothan,  and  the  patriarch  in  the  tomb  at  Shechem !  The 
French  word  for  well  is  puits,  much  like  our  word  pit.  In  the  Scrip- 
tures the  word  stands  for  what  we  call  in  Kentucky  sink-holes,  as  in 
Jeremiah  ii.  6,  "  a  land  of  deserts  and  of  pits,"  signifying,  no  doubt, 
dry  openings  washed  through  the  soil  and  rocks  by  rains. 

The  great  plain  of  Esdraelon,  on  which  I  entered  about  4  P.M.,  has 
been  a  thousand  times  described.  Some  lines  recently  published  in 
an  Alabama  paper,  embody  my  views  of  its  capacity,  were  such  a 
people  to  possess  it  as  its  beauty,  national  importance,  and  extraordi- 
nary fertility  demand : 

"  Mv  valleys  shall  whiten  all  over 

"With  snows  never  born  of  the  cold ; 
And  grain,  like  a  Midas,  shall  cover 
Every  slope  that  it  touches  with  gold. 

"  The  clink  of  the  artisan's  hammer 

Shall  scare  from  the  forest  its  glooms ; 

In  the  brake  shall  the  water-fowl's  clamor 

Be  drowned  by  the  clash  of  the  looms. 

"  Then  up  from  your  torpor,  ye  sleepers ! 
The  dream  ye  are  dreaming  deceives ; 
Go  forth  to  the  fields  with  the  reapers, 
And  garner  the  prodigal  sheaves. 

"  With  flocks  gladden  meadow  and  mountain, 

With  tinkling  herds  speckle  each  hill, 
And  blend  with  the  plash  of  the  fountain 
The  rumble  and  roar  of  the  mill." 

Passing  along  in  sight  of  the  fatal  battle-field  of  Megiddo,  the 
place  of  Josiah's  death,  was  a  good  time  to  review  the  life  of  this  last 
of  Judah's  worthy  kings,  and  I  did  so.  How  faithful  to  his  God ; 
Such  a  man  could  not  but  be  faithful  to  his  trust,  and  he  was  as 


GAZELLES.  489 

much  "  a  martyr  to  his  fidelity"  as  the  man  who  died  at  Jerusalem 
390  years  before.  The  grief  of  Josiah  for  the  sins  of  his  nation,  as  old 
Fuller  quaintly  records  it,  "  was  no  low-flood  of  present  passion,  but 
a  constant  channel  of  continued  sorrow  streaming  from  an  annual 
fountain." 

The  day  was  hot,  no  breezes  stirred,  and  I  began  to  appreciate  such 
tremendous  passages  as  that  in  Dent,  xxviii.  23 ;  the  clouds  seemed 
like  molten  mirrors,  the  heaven  overhead  was  brass.  On  this  plain 
I  met  parties  in  all  the  quaint  costumes  of  the  land.  A  Turkish 
gentleman,  neatly  dressed,  white-beard,  countenance  ruddy,  and,  like 
David's, "  fair  to  look  upon,"  his  eye  kind  and  expressive,  particularly 
attracted  my  attention.  The  grace  of  his  salaam  was  extraordinary. 

A  number  of  the  beautiful  light-footed  antelopes  of  these  plains, 
the  gazelle,  trod  before  me  as  on  the  air,  flying  like  passing  shadows. 
Ossian  E.  Dodge  must  needs  be  fleet  if  he  can  do  what  his  "  Sere- 
nade" promises :  "  I'll  chase  the  antelope  over  the  plain  !"  However, 
they  are  easily  chased,  but  with  difficulty  caught.  Farther  east  from 
Palestine,  they  use  the  cheetah,  or  hunting-tiger,  upon  them,  with 
success.  The  animal  is  brought  hoodwinked  in  a  cart  as  near  to 
the  game  as  possible.  A  herd  being  discovered,  the  cart  is  carefully 
driven  up  to  the  leeward  of  them,  advantage  being  taken  of  any 
ground  which  may  favor  the  approach  of  the  cheetah.  They  are 
accustomed  to  see  the  oxen  and  carts  of  the  cultivators  in  the  fields, 
and,  unless  something  unusual  strikes  their  eye,  will  allow  the  party 
to  approach  Avithin  sixty  or  eighty  yards.  The  leather  hood  is  then 
slipped  off,  and  the  cheetah's  head  turned  in  the  direction  of  the 
herd.  . 

The  glare  of  the  sun,  after  the  enforced  darkness  of  the  liood, 
makes  the*  animal  blink  and  stare  for  a  moment,  and  then,  the 
gazelle  catching  his  eye,  he  drops  from  the  cart,  and,  according  as  the 
ground  favors  him  or  not,  lollops  or  creeps  toward  them.  Arriving 
within  what  he  considers  fair  starting  distance — that  is  to  say,  as 
near  the  herd  as  possible— he  singles  out  the  largest  buck,  and,  to 
use  a  slang  but  expressive  phrase,  "lays  on  to  him."  The  buck 
strains  every  nerve  for  dear  life,  but,  however  fleet  he  may  be,  if  the 
grim  enemy  behind  has  a  fair  start,  it  is  a  hopeless  struggle  frum^the 
first.  At  such  a  time  the  cheetah's  rush  is  most  astonishing.  The 
buck,  although  going  at  his  best  pace,  appears  to  be  scarcely  moving, 
giving  the  idea  often  carried  away  by  spectators,  that  he  is  paralyzed 
with  fear.  The  buck  in  his  agony  makes  a  spurt,  the  cheetah  re- 


490  A   DEMONIAC. 

spends,  the  buck  again,  then  the  cheetah — a  blow  of  the  tetter's  paw, 
a  cloud  of  dust,  a  confusion  of  legs,  and  the  buck  is  on  his  back, 
the  cheetah  holding  the  game  by  the  throat. 

Approaching  the  beautiful  tower  of  Jeniii  (En-gannim)  at  the 
embouchure  of  the  valley,  I  observed  the  palm-trees  shooting  far 
above  the  houses  into  the  blue  sky.  As  I  enter  the  place,  a  woman, 
whose  eyes  are  artificially  colored  black  and  look  frightful,  frowns 
upon  me  as  though  I  had  said  something  naughty,  whereas  I  can 
testify  that  I  wasn't  even  thinking  of  her. 

At  Zerin  (ancient  Jezreel,  where  Jezebel  lived)  a  company  of  Arabs 
had  pitched  their  tents,  making  in  the  wilderness  a  lodging-place  of 
wayfaring  men  (Jeremiah  ix.  2).  Their  girdles  and  bosoms  were 
profusely  stuffed  with  the  weapons  of  murder.  They  looked,  though 
intending  to  be  benignant,  yet  full  of  wildness,  blending  the  fierce- 
ness of  the  tiger  with  the  boldness  of  the  lion.  As  to  the  town  it- 
self, I  had  intended,  as  a  wayfaring  man,  to  turn  aside  here  and  tarry 
for  a  night  (Jeremiah  xiv.  8) ;  for,  as  Southey  says : 

"'Twas  a  late  hour  to  travel  o'er  these  plains, 
No  house  for  miles  around  us,  and  the  way 
Dreary  and  wild ;  the  evening  wind  already 
Made  one's  teeth  chatter." 

But  the  fact  of  the  houses  being  filled  with  dirt  and  nastiness, 
inhabited  promiscuously  by  the  people  and  their  cattle,  as  I  had  seen 
at  Bethel  'two  nights  before,  and  the  difficulty  my  servants  experi- 
enced in  purchasing  grain  for  their  horses,  caused  me  to  go  on  to 
Shunem,  two  miles  farther,  by  starlight.  I  particularly  remember 
one  of  the  Zerin  ites,  a  hag,  who  had 

"  A  pair  of  large  dead  eyes  sunk  in  her  head, 
Just  like  a  corpse,  and  pursed  with  wrinkles  round." 

Truly  a  frightful  creature  She  recalls  the  incident  I  was  about 
to  forget  of  meeting  a  deranged  man  in  the  valley  a  few  hours  before 
— one  of  those  poor  creatures  in  whom  dwell  madness,  melancholy, 
the  phrenzy  of  the  brain,  coming  nearest  to  my  idea  of  the  Scrip- 
tural demoniac.  These  people,  like  the  two  who  were  healed  by 
Jesus,  live  amidst  the  sepulchres  of  the* dead.  They  go  naked.  They 
are  ungovernable,  often  cry  out,  beat  themselves,  and  sometimes  attack 
travellers  to  their  great  injury. 


491 

Thistles,  the  largest  I  ever  saw,  abound  on  the  plain  of  Esdraelon 
Some  of  these  thistles,  having  milk-white  spots  on  the  glossy  green 
surface  of  their  leaves,  recall  the  name  milk  thistle  by  which  they 
are  commonly  known,  and  which  originated  in  the  legend  that  as 
N6tre  Dame  (or  Lady  Mary)  suckled  her  infant  while  passing  along 
the  way  from  Bethlehem  to  Egypt,  a  few  drops  of  mother's  milk  fell 
on  the  thistles,  and  perpetuated  the  tender  fact  forever !  A  more 
serious  reflection,  however,  grows  out  of  the  fact  that  one  of  them 
struck  me  a  most  painful  dab  in  the  eye,  and  so  recalled  the  threat 
of  Joshua  that  his  people  should  be  afflicted  with  "thorns  in  their 
eyes"  (xxiii.  13)  if  they  should  presume  to  break  God's  command- 
ments ! 

To  the  left  of  me  here  was  Acre,  so  warm  a  residence  in  summer 
that  all  who  can,  "  fly  to  the  mountains"  (Lebanon  or  Carmel)  for 
coolness.  The  very  name  Accho,  by  which  the  Hebrews  knew  the 
city,  signifies  hot. 

Going  to  Shunem,  the  last  two  miles  was  one  vast  wheatfield,  with- 
out a  fence,  a  path,  or  any  boundary  between  owners,  except  upright 
stones  ranged  at  proper  intervals.  The  heads  of  wheat  struck  my 
feet  as  I  rode  through  it,  heavy  and  hard,  promising  a  good  crop. 
Approaching  the  village,  a  gang  of  rough -looking  Arabs  were  lean- 
ing on  the  gate-posts,  moodily  smoking  and  gazing  toward  me.  At 
the  public  spring  was  a  group  of  muleteers  and  cameleers  bearing 
sacks  of  wheat  to  the  seaport,  Acre — hideous  fellows,  strong  of 
scent,  but  respectful.  One  of  them  oifered  me  a  cigarette.  The 
others  petitioned  in  proper  form  for  backsheesh. 

The  sheikh  of  the  village,  after  some  grumbling  and  delay,  fur- 
nished me  a  room,  u  a  chamber  on  the  wall,"  exactly  like  that  which 
was  built  for  the  Prophet  Elisha  at  this  very  town  2,700  years  ago. 
But  all  the  horrors  of  my  night  at  Bethel  were  repeated  and  inten- 
sified. No  wonder  the  Philistines  worshipped  Beelzebub,  the  lord  of 
lice,  flies,  fleas,  and  other  entomologia  with  which  their  country  was 
(and  is)  afflicted.  If  they  believed  their  particular  Baal  served  the 
purpose  of  a  good  corrosive  sublimate,  or  Costar's  "  roach  remedy," 
it  was  a  good-enough  worship  for  pagans.  I  will  not  attempt  to  de* 
Bcribe  my  sufferings,  but  I  know  I  got  up  early,  and  left  just  as 

"  The  trembling  pulses  of  the  dawn 

Fill  with  faint  gold  the  violet  skies, 
And  on  the  moist  day-smitten  lawn 
The  peace  of  morning  lies." 


492  NAZARETH. 

As  soon  as  I  got  into  the  edge  of  the  village,  however,  I  divested  my- 
self of  pants,  etc.,  without  the  least  romance,  and,  regardless  of  police 
regulations,  stood  so  till  I  had  removed  thronging  millions  of  the 
tormenting  creatures  from  my  scarified,  tortured,  and  speckled  per- 
son. 

Passing  around  the  slope  of  "  Little  Hermon,"  as  David  calls  it,  I 
approached  the  village  of  Nain,  where  Jesus  raised  from  the  dead 
"  the  only  son  of  his  mother,  and  she  was  a  widow,"  and  where  was 
exhibited  that  tender,  penitent  love  that  bathed  Christ's  feet  with 
tears.  At  this  place  the  old  pilgrims  used  to  complain  that  they 
were  "  derided  and  spurted  at  by  divers  of  the  baser  people ;"  and  in 
good  truth  the  people  do  look  a  shade  nastier  and  a  trifle  more  in- 
hospitable than  the  majority  I  have  met.  But  it  will  not  always  be 
so.  In  the  regeneration  to  which  this  country  ere  long  will  be  sub- 
jected, Nain,  the  place  of  holy,  happy  remembrances,  shall  have  its 
share. 

Near  this  place  I  note  one  of  those  fellows  styled  Cawass,  from 
Nazareth.  He  is  dressed  in  stunning  red  (redder  than  Solomon's 
robes,  said  to  have  been  the  reddest  thing  ever  known  in  this  coun- 
try), with  a  scimetar  of  state  slung  by  a  broad  sash  across  his  shoul- 
ders, a  huge  silver-mounted  staff  of  office  in  his  right  hand,  with 
which  he  clashes  the  pavement  as  he  walks.  Another  description  of 
one  of  these  officers  is  that  of  a  man  in  picturesque  costume  of  em- 
broidered blue,  with  rich  turban,  scarlet  saddle,  and  long  scimetar. 

About  9  A.  M.,  after  climbing  the  most  tremendous  hill  I  ever  saw 
a  horse  go  up,  I  came  in  sight  of  the  place  where  was  reared  from 
early  infancy  the  child  of  the  star  and  the  song,  Nazareth.  A  dove 
was  approaching  me  from  the  direction  of  Mount  Hermon,  and  a 
pelican  from  that  of  Mount  Carmel,  recalling  Hosea  xi.  11,  "as  a 
bird  out  of  Egypt,  and  as  a  dove  out  of  the  laud  of  Assyria."  Crowds 
of  people,  travellers,  traders,  natives,  covered  the  hills  in  all  directions 
The  cry  of  the  muezzin  floated  on  the  morning  air,  Allah  il  Alia) 
wa  Mohammed  resoul  Allah,  There  is  but  one  God,  and  Mohammt 
is  his  Prophet.  1  passed  the  Fountain  of  the  Virgin,  noticing  par- 
ticularly the  Nazareth  women  who  throng  there ;  their  complexioi 
darker  than  our  American  ladies,  "a  rich,  clear  olive,  through  whicl 
the  blood  seems  to  glow  like  light  through  an  alabaster  shade,  theii 
lips  delicately  chiselled  and  ripe-red."  (I  borrow  all  that.)  But,  ex- 
hausted by  the  want  of  sleep,  I  hurry  to  the  convent,  where,  on 
clean,  white  bed,  in  fresh  garments  unpolluted  by  the  vermin  of  Shu- 


SUNDAY   AT   NAZARETH.  493 

nem,  I  lie  down,  and  in  an  instant  Nazareth  and  the  Holy  Land 
and  every  other  sublimary  scene  were  to  me  as  nothing.  I  was 
awaked  about  3  P.M.  by  the  usual  chorus  of  an  Oriental  town,  in  which 
the  ringing  of  the  chapel  bell,  barking  dogs,  braying  asses,  howling 
natives,  and  squalling  children,  are  some  of  the  ingredients.  Doves 
were  cooing  at  my  windows,  reminding  me  that  the  sacred  doves  of 
Mecca  like  these  are  blue,  and  that  none  dare  to  kill  one  under  pen- 
alty of  death.  My  experience  in  this  place  is  given  in  an  article 
composed  for  a  religious  journal,  entitled 

A   SUNDAY   AT  NAZARETH. 

It  was  unfortunate  for  my  visit  to  Nazareth  that  I  had  been  kept 
awake  the  night  before  by  the  myriads  of  insects  that  swarmed  the 
house  in  which  I  had  my  abode  at  Salem  (Shunem).  Arriving  there 
after  dark,  and  being  allotted  an  empty  room,  apparently  clean,  I  had 
spread  my  blankets  and  sought  repose,  under  pleasing  expectations 
and  necessity  based  upon  a  twelve-hours  ride  from  Nablous  (She- 
chem).  But  how  egregiously  was  I  disappointed!  The  fleas  ap- 
parently regarded  me  as  sent  for  their  especial  accommodation,  and 
actually  devoured  me. 

The  next  morning,  May  15, 1  got  away  from  Shnnem,came  around 
the  spur  of  Little  Hermon  to  the  west,  starting  up  immense  flights 
of  storks  and  at  least  one  jackal,  traversed  eastward  to  the  edge  of 
Nain,  welcomed  old  Tabor  for  an  hour,  passed  through  Iksal,  and 
climbed  the  mountain  above  it  toward  Nazareth.  No  wonder  that 
an  ignorant  priesthood  has  appropriated  this  mountain  as  the  Mount 
of  Precipitation,  although  no  person  of  common  sense  can  agree 
with  them  ;  for  it  is  the  steepest  ascent  I  ever  undertook  with  horses. 
Several  times  it  seemed  as  if  my  nimble  beast,  which  had  never 
before  hesitated  to  go  up  anything  that  I  could  ascend,  from  the 
heights  near  Jebail  to  the  heights  near  Jericho,  paused,  and  seemed 
disposed  to  expostulate  with  his  rider.  However,  I  persuaded  him 
to  push  to  the  top,  and  then  rode  two  or  three  miles  farther  to  Naza- 
reth. So  much  for  the  pseudo  Mount  of  Precipitation. 

The  town  of  Nazareth,  as  I  approached  it  from  the  east,  presents 
the  most  graceful  appearance  of  any  town  in  Palestine.  Lying  not 
quite  in  the  valley  on  the  left,  and  not  quite  upon  the  mountain  on 
the  right,  it  hangs  gracefully  upon  the  slope,  as  if  hesitating  between 
the  two.  The  fountain  at  the  eastern  opening  of  the  valley  is  prop- 
erly  the  boundary  of  the  town. 


494  THE  LATIN   CONTENT. 

A  great  crowd  of  women  was  congregated  there,  and  groups  were 
coming  and  going  with  the  great  Nazareth  water-jars  upon  their 
heads,  and  the  strange  Nazareth  coin-rolls  around  their  faces.  So 
the  mother  of  Jesus,  during  a  period  of  not  less  than  twenty  years, 
brought  her  water-jar  morning  and  evening,  and  wore  perhaps  the 
same  curious  ornament  upon  her  face.  Occasionally,  among  the* 
groups,  I  could  see  the  figures  of  little  boys  and  girls  running  by 
mothers'  sides,  clinging  trustfully  to  mothers'  hands.  So,  during  the 
years  of  childhood,  must  the  little  form  of  Jesus  have  been  seen,  as 
he  ran  by  his  mother's  side,  and  held  as  firmly  to  his  mother's  hand. 

To  the  east  of  the  spring  there  is  a  Christian  church — I  do  not  re- 
member of  what  denomination ;  and  still  further  eastward,  among 
the  groups  of  olive-trees,  a  few  tents,  over  which  the  British  flag  was 
waving.  Passing  the  fountain,  and  moving  toward  the  town,  my 
attention  was  called  to  an  object  painfully  incongruous  with  the  holy 
day  and  the  holy  place.  It  was  a  company  of  Turkish  soldiers  en- 
gaged in  drill,  their  instruments  sounding,  and  words  of  command 
reverberating  from  the  lofty  ridge  behind  them.  Discordant  as  it 
was,  however,  I  could  not  help  thinking  that  but  for  the  protection 
afforded  me  by  these  and  such  as  these,  my  journey  through  so  many 
of  the  most  dangerous  localities  of  Palestine  could  never  have  been 
accomplished.  Justice  requires  the  traveller's  praise  to  Governor-Gen- 
eral Raschid  Pasha  at  Damascus,  and  his  admirable  supporters  at  all 
the  large  towns,  for  making  these  roads  as  free  to  their  feet  as  in  the 
days  of  King  David  himself. 

I  was  a  guest  at  the  Latin  Convent  during  my  stay  in  Nazareth. 
This  is  a  clean,  cool,  stone  edifice  of  two  stories  in  height,  containing 
about  fifty  rooms,  in  which  all  travellers  are  welcomed  "  without  money 
and  without  price."  The  term  of  each  one's  stay,  however,  is  limited 
to  three  days,  and  each  guest  is  expected  (although  no  public  intima- 
tion is  given  him  to  that  effect)  to  contribute  something  on  his  de- 
parture toward  the  expenses  of  the  house.  The  usual  donation  is  five 
francs  per  day,  and  I  can  testify  that  when  I  tendered  that  sum,  it 
was  accepted  with  a  smile  of  approval  which  led  me  to  believe  that 
it  was  deemed  sufficient.  The  fare  is  abundant,  and  as  well  cooke 
as  is  ever  done  in  this  country.  Good  wine,  coffee,  oranges,  and  drie 
fruits  form  the  dessert  The  bread,  as  usual  in  this  part  of  Palestine, 
is  execrable. 

Toward  the  close  of  the  day  I  climbed  the  hill  on  the  north  of 
the  city,  the  veritable  Mount  of  Precipitation,  and  enjoyed  an  enlarge 


THINKING   OF  JE8U8.  495 

view  of  the  surrounding  country.  No  writer  has  done  justice  to  this 
glorious  panorama,  the  finest  in  all  Palestine.  Did  not  Jesus  stand 
here  ?  This  was  the  thought  that  gave  a  coloring  to  this  sublime 
outlook  as  I  gathered  it  in.  On  the  west  the  Great  Sea  opened  before 
me,  apparently  so  near  that  I  could  throw  a  stone  into  it ;  on  its  shores, 
Caiffa  and  Acre  ;  a  little  more  to  the  left  the  plain  of  Esdraelon,  ter- 
minated by  Mount  Carmel,  redolent  of  glorious  memories.  The 
River  Kishon,  "  that  ancient  river,"  could  be  traced  out  as  a  green 
ribbon  through  the  plain.  Turning  more  to  the  left  were  the 
ranges  of  Samaria,  ending  in  Ebal  and  Gerizim ;  then  little  Hermon, 
Gilboa,  and  Tabor.  Then  I  could  trace  out  the  spot  where,  in  its  deep 
basin,  lies  the  Sea  of  Genesareth,  which  I  am  to  visit  to-morrow. 
Next  is  old  Jebel-es-Sheikh,  Hermon,  its  snows  gleaming  in  the  sunset. 
Next  the  spurs  of  Anti-Lebanon  ;  and  so  on  round  to  the  Mediter- 
ranean again.  Did  not  Jesus  often  stand  here  ?  Let  me  solemnly 
retire  from  a  place  more  sacred  than  Pisgah,  more  sacred  than  Sinai, 
and  fill  my  soul  with  such  memories  of  this  hour  as  will  arouse  the 
Christian  love  of  many  in  the  distant  land  over  which  that  sinking 
sun  is  at  this  moment  shining  with  noonday  splendor. 

"  I  thought  of  Jesus  in  the  vale 

Of  Nazareth,  sweet  Nazareth ; 
His  name  was  murmured  in  its  fount, 
His  praises  swept  along  its  mount, 
His  youthful  feet  had  trodden  here, 
His  earliest  thoughts  had  moved  in  prayer." 

Then,  as  I  bowed  in  faith, 

"  This  voice  from  Nazareth,  I  heard, 
'  The  Vale  is  holy  to  our  youthful  LOBD  !' " 

Keclining  here  under  a  fig-tree,  while  the  natives  yonder  smoke 
their  poor  tobacco,  and  the  great  sun  yonder  lowers  his  head  and  slants 
his  rays  to  the  eastward,  let  me  give  the  season  to  a  comment  upon 
this  overshadowing  tree,  which  is  my  present  creditor  for  coolness 
and  use.  The  names  fig  and  fig-tree  are  spotted  here  and  there  all 
over  the  Bible ;  referring  in  all  cases  to  the  Ficus  carica,  which  is 
now  under  observation.  The  country  of  the  Jews  ever  abound  in  it 
(Deut.  viii.  8),  as  Moses  said  ;  and  Chaplain  Drake  justly  says  (in 
Smith's  Dictionary)  "the  character  of  the  tree,  with  its  wide- 
spreading  branches,  accords  well  with  the  derivation  of  the  Hebrew 
name,  teenah,  to  stretch  out"  People  here  still  call  the  fig  teen, 


i96  LESSONS  OF  THE   FIG-TREE. 

which  shows  how  the  old  names  stick.  In  fact,  a  name  is  as  much  a 
landmark,  when  applied  to  a  tree,  as  to  a  Masonic  grip. 

Come  forth,  then,  old  companion,  my  pocket  Bible,  and  yield  the 
testimony  of  thy  many  voices  to  the  symbolical  value  of  the  fig-tree. 

Not  to  enlarge  upon  the  prudery  of  our  first  parents,  who,  find- 
ing themselves  naked,  "  sewed  fig-leaves  together  and  made  them- 
selves aprons "  (Genesis,  iii.  7),  I  summon  first  the  Prophet  Zec- 
hariah  (B.C.  522),  who  so  forcibly  delineates  the  branch-type  of 
Jesus,  to  say  what  use  his  sacred  reed  makes  of  our  Ficus  ? 

Zechariah.  When  I  wrote,  Judah  had  but  just  returned,  few  and 
feeble,  from  Babylon,  but  buoyed  up  both  by  temporal  and  spiritual 
hopes.  To  increase  this  spirit  of  expectancy  in  them,  I  promised  that, 
although  now  the  trees  were  just  planted  and  the  foundation  just 
laid,  yet  in  the  good  time  coming  "  they  should  call  every  man  his 
neighbor  under  the  vine  and  under  the  fig-tree"  (iii.  10). 

Micah.  I  was  more  than  two  centuries  earlier  than  Zechariah 
(B.C.  740),  but  I  was  favored  to  witness  the  same  vision,  and  predicted 
that  they  should  sit  "  every  man  under  his  vine  and  under  his  fig- 
tree,  and  none  should  make  him  afraid"  (iv.  4). 

Ezra.  When  I  wrote  of  the  peaceful  days  of  Solomon  (his  very 
name  denotes  peace),  I  could  find  no  better  image  of  safety  and  re- 
pose than  those  you  have  just  recorded  ;  and  I  said,  "  Judah  and  Israel 
dwelt  safely,  every  man  under  his  vine  and  under  his  fig-tree,  from 
Dan  even  unto  Beersheba,  all  the  days  of  Solomon"  (1  Kings  iv.  25). 
Yonder,  some  forty  miles  northeast,  is  Dan ;  one  hundred  miles  to  the 
southward  is  Beersheba.  (As  my  interlocutor  quoted  his  old  words 
he  seemed  to  sigh,  as  if  to  imply,  "  But  that  was  more  than  four 
centuries  before  my  day  (B.C.  536).  Alas  for  the  bitter  change !  ") 

Jeremiah.  In  my  jeremiads  (B.C.  628),  I  symbolized  the  coming 
fury  of  the  avenging  God  in  the  fruit  of  this  useful  tree,  and  said, 
"  The  Lord  will  surely  consume  them ;  there  shall  be  no  figs  on  the 
fig-tree,  and  the  leaf  (this  broad-lobed,  thick,  succulent  leaf)  shall 
fade"  (viii.  13).  But  when,  thirty  years  later,  the  breaking  up  of  my 
nation  began,  and  the  best  of  us  had  been  deported  captives  to  Baby- 
lon, the  Lord  showed  me,  in  a  vision,  two  baskets  of  figs  set  before 
the  temple  (at  Jerusalem) ;  one  having  very  good  figs,  even  like  the 
figs  that  are  first  ripe  ;  the  other  very  naughty  figs,  which  could  not 
be  eaten  for  badness.  By  the  good  figs  I  taught  that  portion  of 
Judah  who  were  captives,  that  in  their  foreign  homes  they  should 
find  hearts  to  know  God,  and  should  again  become  His  people,  and 


LESSONS   OF  THE   FIG-TREE.  497 

oe  brought  back  with  prosperity  to  their  old  laud.  But  by  the 
naughty  figs  I  warned  the  residue  ol  Jerusalem,  who  remained,  that 
for  their  sins  they  should  yet  be  driven  out  and  forever  cut  off  from 
the  favor  of  God  (chapter  xxiv). 

Hosea.  Yearning  to  awaken  the  gratitude  of  my  people  toward 
"  Him  who  giveth,  upbraiding  not,"  I  compared  Israel  in  the  wilder- 
ness, downtrodden  and  servile  as  she  had  been,  but  rich  and  happy  in 
my  love,  to  the  goodly  fruits  of  this  tree :  "  I  saw  your  fathers  as  the 
first  ripe  in  the  fig-tree  at  the  first  time"  (ix.  10).  But,  alas,  their 
first-fruits  were*  deceitful. 

Solomon.  Looking  over  "the  fat  valleys"  of  my  dominions  for 
figures  that  should  entice  the  spirit  of  my  love,  I  said,  "  The  fig-tree 
putteth  forth  her  green  figs.  Arise,  my  love,  my  fair  one,  come 
away  "  (Canticles  ii.  13). 

Other  witnesses  abundantly  testify  to  this  fruit. 

The  next  day  (Monday,  May  16)  I  received  a  note  from  Rev.  Mr. 
Zelner,  English  Protestant  Missionary  here,  with  a  membership  of 
some  five  hundred,  warning  me  against  going,  in  that  hot  weather, 
to  the  Sea  of  Galilee.  His  apprehensions  of  danger,  from  fever  and 
sunstroke,  were  by  no  means  unfounded ;  yet  I  could  not  forego  my 
settled  purpose  to  visit  places  so  consecrated  to  Jewish  and  Christian 
history,  and  about  noon  I  started. 

The  name  Nazareth  is  often  found  in  the  catalogue  of  Masonic 
Lodges.  Mount  Tabor,  ciose  by,  is  used  by  Lodge  No.  65,  Massachu- 
setts. To  make  the  association  more  intimate,  I  locate  here  the  names 
of  ten  well-known  Masons,  viz :  Charles  Vaill,  M.D. ;  Thomas  A.  Car- 
nahan  ;  H.  G.  Hazelrigg;  John  F.  Sandford,  M.D. ;  Henry  C.  Banks; 
Lewis  A.  Rousseau  ;  Ambrose  W.  Wilson  ;  James  M.  Fuller ;  Horace 
Chase ;  William  T.  Anderson. 


RING   OF  8UPHIS,   PHABAOH   OF  EGYPT. 

32 


CHAPTER   XXVIII. 

THE   SEA    OF   GALILEE. 

T  such  a  convent  as  this  of  Nazareth  you  are  sure  of  find- 
ing clean  beds,  good,  wholesome,  and  abundant  food,  marks 
of  courteous  attention,  and  no  questions  asked  in  relation 
to  your  religious  faith.    At  breakfast  I  had  fish,  mutton, 
eggs,  vegetables,  bread,  fruit,  wine  with  the  food,  and  cof- 
fee after  it.     Had  I  time  to  spare,  I  should  like  to  spend  a  week  with 
that  monk  who  wears  his  curiously-knotted  cable-tow  four  times 
around  his  body,  and  does  his  own  cooking. 

I  left  Nazareth,  as  described  in  the  last  chapter,  about  noon  on 
Monday,  and  reached  Tiberias  at  3  P.M.  The  ride  is  a  pleasant  one, 
having  the  companionship  of  Cana  of  Galilee,  Mount  Tabor,  the 
battle-field  of  Hattin,  and  above  all,  Mount  Herman,  who  has  rarely 
been  out  of  sight  for  more  than  thirty  minutes  at  a  time  since  I 
rounded  Mount  Ebal  two  days  ago.  If  that  calm,  solemn,  hoary 
head  of  Hermon  has  good  eyes,  at  his  age,  what  secrets  of  history  he 
ferrets  out,  looking  out  from  his  great  height  of  10,000  feet  clear 
over  this  country,  watching  every  company  of  travellers,  every 
change  of  seasons,  every  stormy  cloud — watching  the  approach  of  all 
invading  armies,  and  the  spires  of  smoke  sent  up  from  their  camp- 
fires  and  the  torches  they  put  to  habitations,  and  their  battle-fields, 
and  their  retreats — as  he  watched  Abram  with  his  followers  coming 
around  his  foot,  4,000  years  ago,  and  Jacob,  who  fled  eastward  in  the 
succeeding  century,  and  the  deportation  of  the  Jewish  exiles  twelve 
centuries  later,  and  their  happy  return — as  he  watched  Alexander 
and  Titus  and  the  Crusaders,  and  is  now  watching  me.  With  all  his 
vigilance  and  careful  storing  up  of  historical  facts,  awaiting  the  first 
"interviewer,"  the  old  mountain  (Jebel-es-Sheikh  they  call  him  here, 
the  Mount  of  the  Chief),  busies  himself  every  night  at  this  season, 
in  cooling  and  sending  down  "the  dew  of  Hermon"  (Ps.  cxxxiii.),  as 


500  THE   DEW   OF   HERMON. 

welcome  to  this  country  as  its  counterpart  is  figuratively  to  a  Free. 
masons'  Lodge. 

The  frequent  and  copious  dews  and  fogs  of  Palestine — much  more 
abundant  than  one  would  suppose  in  such  an  arid  climate — have 
furnished  the  inspired  writers  with  many  of  their  beautiful  and 
expressive  figures.  Our  readers  will  of  course  recall  the  beautiful 
extract  from  Psalm  cxxxiii.,  introduced  into  our  ceremony  of  Entered 
Apprentice :  "  As  the  dew  of  Hermon,  and  as  the  dew  that  descended 
upon  the  mountains  of  Zion,"  etc.  In  the  summer  the  dew  of  Pal- 
estine is  so  copious  as  to  supply  to  a  considerable  extent  the  absence 
of  rain,  and  becomes  important  to  the  farmer.  In  proof  of  this,  the 
well-known  sign  of  Gideon  may  be  adduced  (Judges  vi.  37,  etc.).  In 
the  divine  blessing  (Genesis  xxvii.  28)  it  is  coupled  with  rain  or 
mentioned  as  a  prime  source  of  fertility.  Its  withdrawal  is  attributed 
to  the  divine  curse.  In  prophetic  imagery  it  becomes  a  leading 
object,  by  reason  of  its  penetrating  moisture  with  the  apparent  effect 
of  rain,  while  its  speedy  evanescence  typifies  the  transient  goodness 
of  the  hypocrite.  In  several  places  it  is  named  as  a  token  of  ex- 
posure in  the  night. 

Every  traveller  remarks  upon  this  subject  of  dew.  Coming  to 
Shunem  on  Saturday  night,  my  coat  was  nearly  wet  through  with 
dew.  Like  the  person  in  Canticles  v.  2,  "  my  head  was  filled  with 
the  dew,  and  my  locks  with  the  drops  of  the  night."  Some  of  the 
passages  where  the  dews  of  this  country  are  mentioned,  are  as  follows : 
"  Your  goodness  is  as  the  early  dew"  (Hosea  vi.  4) ;  "  will  be  as  the 
dew  unto  Israel"  (Hosea  xvi.  5) ;  "  His  body  (Nebuchadnezzar's)  was 
wet  with  the  dews  of  heaven"  (Daniel  iv.  33) ;  "  Thou  hast  the  dew  of 
thy  youth."  (Ps.  ex.  3.)  There  are  twenty-five  more  allusions  in  the 
Bible  to  the  word  dew.  I  observed  at  the  mouth  of  Dog  River  how 
the  dampness  of  the  dew  on  the  rocks  brings  out  the  remarkable 
figures  and  inscriptions  delineated  there.  At  Tiberias  I  noticed  the 
tents  of  a  party  encamped  there,  drenched  with  dew.  They  looked 
as  if  they  had  been  exposed  to  a  fall  of  rain  during  the  night.  This 
is  the  same  affusion  so  often  referred  to  in  Scripture,  that  "  descended 
upon  the  mountain  of  Zion,"  recalling  the  expressions  in  Psalm 
cxxxiii.,  and  others. 

At  Cana  of  Galilee,  a  few  miles  east  of  Nazareth,  I  spent  an  hour 
under  the  shade  of  the  immense  cactus  hedge,  every  leaf  of  which  is  a 
vast  pincushion  stuck  full  of  needles,  enjoying  my  noontide  repast 
at  the  spring  of  water  historically  associated  with  the  performance 


CANA   OF   GALILEE.  501 

of  the  first  miracle  of  Christ  (John  ii.  1-11).  Here  was  that  "  beo-in- 
ing  of  miracles  which  Jesus  did,  and  manifested  forth  his  glory,  and 
his  disciples  believed  on  him."  Every  recovered  limb,  every  spared  eye, 
every  purified  leper,  from  the  setting  out  upon  the  divine  labor, 
proved  that  Jesus  came  "  that  they  might  have  life,  and  that  they 
might  have  it  more  abundantly." 

The  place  itself  comes  very  accurately  under  the  poet's  descrip- 
tion : 

'•'  Here  is  a  vale,  sequestered,  green, 

From  which  a  crystal  fount  is  welling 
Its  silvery  tide,  whose  rippling  sheen 
Over  the  tufted  marge  is  swelling." 

The  rankness  and  greenness  of  the  willows  here  recall  the  divine 
promise  to  his  people,  as  in  Isaiah  xliv.  4 :  "And  they  shall  spring  up 
as  among  the  grass,  as  willows  by  the  watercourses."  The  oleander 
blossoms  give  out  their  delicate  almond-like  fragrance  from  such 
dense  clusters  as  hide  the  foliage  of  the  trees  that  bear  them  :  and 
here  again  I  recognize  the  song  of  the  nightingale,  that  mingles  so 
delightfully  with  all  my  memories  of  the  Jordan.  I  can  indorse 
most  heartily  the  words  of  Jules  Michelet  when,  speaking  of  this 
bird,  he  says :  "  His  is  the  nocturnal  melody,  the  deep  poesy  of  the 
shadows,  the  hidden  meaning  of  the  grand  effects  of  evening,  the 
solemnity  of  midnight,  the  aspirations  before  dawn ;  in  fact,  that 
infinitely  varied  poem  which  translates  and  reveals  to  us,  in  all  its 
changes,  a  heart  brimful  of  tenderness." 

The  remains  of  aqueducts  here,  and  in  connection  with  all  water- 
fountains  in  Palestine,  recall  what  occurs  to  me  in  every  large  place 
I  visit  in  the  East,  that  Koman  colonies  seem  always  to  have  supplied 
themselves  amply  with  water,  brought  often  from  great  distances  at 
vast  expense,  and  on  a  scale  far  beyond  anything  attempted  in  modern 
times.  The  old  Christians  here  were  taught  to  believe  that  the  hot- 
springs  a  few  miles  beyond  are  the  tears  of  angels.  The  town  of  Cana 
itself  is  a  wasted  city  with  but  few  inhabitants,  houses  without  men, 
land  utterly  desolate,  the  men  removed  far  away,  a  great  forsaking  in 
the  midst  of  the  land!  (Isaiah  vi.  12.)  As  for  the  people,  I  must  not 
slander  my  fellow-men,  but  will  affirm,  using  sound  Scriptural  expres- 
sion too,  that,  though  they  had  washed  themselves  with  nitre  and  taken 
to  themselves  much  soap,  they  had  not  been  clean  (Jeremiah  ii.  22). 
As  on  the  banks  of  the  Jordan  where  Christ  laid  his  clothes,  a  church 


502  HATTIN. 

was  erected  a  thousand  years  afterward,  the  river  here  being  called 
a  sling's-throw  across,  so  here  at  Cana,  to  which  place  he  came  from 
his  baptism,  a  three-days  journey,  the  people  profess  to  identify  every 
locality  on  which  he  sat,  stood,  or  worked  in  his  divine  mission. 

The  pomegranates  here  seem  to  me  larger  and  finer  than  any  groves 
of  the  class  that  I  have  seen  in  Palestine.  I  must  not  entirely  over- 
look the  fact  of  Bonaparte's  remarkable  defeat  of  the  Arab  troops 
close  by  here,  at  the  foot  of  Mount  Tabor,  in  1799  ;  but  will  summon 
Mr.  Headley  to  recall  some  of  its  incidents :  "  The  whole  plain  was  filled 
with  marching  columns  and  charging  squadrons  of  wildly-galloping 
steeds,  while  the  thunder  of  cannon  and  the  fierce  fire  of  musketry, 
amidst  which  was  now  and  then  heard  the  blast  of  thousands  of 
trumpets  and  strains  of  martial  music,  filled  the  air."  With  all  the 
horrors  of  these  engagements  around  the  plain  of  Esdraelon,  they 
were  spared  the  cold,  distressing  rains  that  always  follow  the  great 
battles  of  modern  times,  and  so  dreadfully  aggravate  the  sufferings 
of  the  wounded.  In  their  three-days  fight  there  was  no  explosion  of 
artillery  to  shake  water  from  the  clouds.  In  fact,  the  Crusaders,  A.D. 
1099,  would  have  been  glad  of  a  little  of  it  to  ameliorate  the  horrors 
of  their  July  siege  of  Jerusalem. 

Passing  eastward,  the  next  place  of  special  interest  demanding  my 
pencil  is  the  battle-field  of  Hattin,  that  fatal  field  of  chivalry.  Peter 
the  Hermit,  who,  a  century  before,  stirred  the  heart  of  Europe  to  go 
crusading  hopelessly  against  the  Paynim  could  have  had  no  premoni- 
tion of  this  great  day  of  slaughter,  when  every  hollow  on  these 
slopes  became  a  Golgotha,  a  place  of  skulls,  whose  bodies  were  drag- 
ged from  their  graves  by  beasts  as  an  abominable  branch  (Isaiah 
xiv.  19).  In  my  chapter  upon  Knight-Templary  more  will  be  found 
upon  this  society,  which  in  theory  was  an  embodiment  of  perfect 
truth,  justice,  mercy,  and  purity,  drawn  upon  the  only  model  that  his- 
tory affords,  Jesus  of  Nazareth.  My  notes  during  a  brief  tarry  in  the 
battle-field,  bring  together  Ramleh,  Joppa,  Masada,  Acre,  Jerusalem, 
and  a  score  of  other  localities  sacred  to  their  memory.  The  war- 
cries  of  the  Templars  were  Deus  vult  (God  wills  it)  and  similar 
expressions.  The  names  of  distinguished  leaders  were  used  as  war- 
cries,  as  Scott  has  well  expressed  in  his  various  historical  novels. 
Yet  it  is  not  to  be  credited  that  the  expression  "  Hip,  hip,  hurrah," 
was  a  Templar  cry,  derived  from  the  initials  of  the  phrase  Hieroso- 
lyma  est  perdita,  "  Jerusalem  is  lost,"  although  I  find  the  fact  stated 
in  the  papers,  and,  as  ji  rule,  what  the  newspapers  say  is  true  !  To  get 


PRIVILEGES   OF  TEMPLARS.  503 

a  good  account  of  the  exploits  of  the  Knights  Templar  and  other 
crusading  orders,  we  must  go  to  French  authors  rather  than  English- 
The  reason  is  a  national  one :  all  the  leaders  of  the  Crusades  were 
French;  the  architecture  introduced  into  the  Holy  Land  is  strictly 
French  (Norman) ;  the  language  spoken  by  the  Crusaders  was  French ; 
and  in  fact  the  English  part  of  the  work  from  1099  to  1187  was 
quite  insignificant.  To-day  there  are  no  such  thoroughly  scientific 
and  readable  books  on  the  Holy  Land  as  those  of  Chateaubriand,  De 
Saulcy,  Renan,  De  Vogue,  Lamartine,  and  a  host  of  French  authors, 
of  whom  scarcely  a  tithe  has  been  translated  into  our  own  tongue. 

A  nervous  writer  of  the  seventeenth  century  sums  up  the  story 
of  Knight-Templary  in  a  dissertation  upon  their  troublous  reign, 
their  high  valor,  their  alternate  changes  of  toil  and  fight,  foes  always  at 
hand,  but  succor  afar  off;  finally  overthrown  through  homebred  trea- 
son. The  tombs  of  the  later  heroes  of  this  Order  in  its  legitimate  suc- 
cession ara  best  seen,  I  am  told,  in  the  splendid  church  of  St.  John  at 
Valetta,  Malta,  where  four  hundred  of  them  lie  buried  in  such  close 
embrace  that  the  slabs  of  beautiful  parti-colored  marbles,  profusely 
sculptured  with  heraldic  devices,  form  the  floor  of  that  edifice,  as  those 
of  the  ancient  Hebrews  line  the  western  slopes  of  Olivet  near  its  base. 
It  is  in  explanation  of  the  theory  on  which  these  warriors  fought 
and  lived  that  the  following  privileges,  among  others,  were  secured 
to  them  by  law: 

1.  They  could  not  be  sued  for  debt. 

2.  They  were  exempted  from  interest  on  borrowed  money. 

3.  They  were  exempted  from  taxes. 

4.  They  could  sell  their  lands  without   asking  permission    from 
their  feudal  lord. 

5.  The  church  was  under  pledges  to  anathematize  all  who  should 
dare  to  molest  them. 

6.  They  could  plead  spiritual  jurisdiction  alone. 

7.  All  their  sins  had  plenary  forgiveness  without  proof  of  peni- 
tence.    In  an  age  of  carnal  rule  such  privileges  as  these   must  have 
prompted  many  "  to  go  to  the  wars." 

No  member  of  the  Masonic  Order  of  Knights  Templars  should 
think  of  visiting  London  without  taking  a  day  or  two  to  examine 
the  old  Temple  church,  whose  foundations  were  laid  A.D.  1185.  A 
few  years  since,  this  venerable  edifice  underwent  a  restoration  at  the 
cost  of  8250,000,  and  is  now  as  nearly  as  possible  in  the  condition 
it  presented  at  its  erection,  nearly  seven  centuries  ago.  It  is  known 


504  POOR  80LDIEE8  OF  JE8U8. 

that  when  the  Ord'T  of  Knights  Templars  was  destroyed  in  the  fif- 
teenth century,  the  possession  of  this  building  fell  into  the  hands  of 
a  company  of  lawyers,  who  have  held  it  with  their  successors  ever 
since. 

Quaint  ancient  customs  are  maintained  there,  recalling  old  prac- 
tices and  forgotten  causes.  The  lawyers  dine  together,  two  by  two,  and 
the  fragments  are  given  to  the  servants,  who  are  styled paniers,  as  in 
the  Crusades.  Quarrelling,  murmuring,  and  insubordination  are  for- 
bidden, and  in  many  ways  the  influence  of  the  old  Masonic  system 
which  lay  at  the  basis  of  Knight-Templary  is  exhibited. 

The  harmony  of  the  proportions  of  this  old  building  and  its  fairy- 
like  beauty  and  gracefulness  of  form  delight  every  beholder;  but 
nothing  will  attract  the  eye  of  a  Knight  Templar  so  much  as  the 
sight  of  a  row  of  famous  monumental  effigies  of  secular  warriors, 
with  their  legs  crossed,  in  token  that  they  had  assumed  the  cross,  and 
taken  the  vow  to  march  to  the  defence  of  the  Christian  faith  in  Pal- 
estine. These  have  been  so  perfectly  restored  as  to  show  few  signs 
of  age  or  misuse. 

Almost  the  entire  history  of  this  heroic  band  is  local  to  the  Holy 
Land.  Its  origin  is  referred  to  the  necessity  of  affording  to  pilgrims 
from  Europe  protection  in  coming  from  the  sea-coast  to  Jerusalem, 
in  going  from  Jerusalem  to  the  Jordan,  and  generally  in  passing  to 
and  from  the  holy  places  of  Palestine.  Many  of  the  pilgrims  had 
been  plundered  and  subjected  to  various  outrages,  when,  in  the  year 
1118,  nineteen  years  after  the  capture  of  Jerusalem  by  the  Crusaders, 
it  was  proposed  to  organize  a  society  under  the  distinctive  title  of 
the  "  Poor  Soldiers  of  Jesus,"  whose  one  duty  it  should  be  to  clear  the 
road  of  marauders,  by  constituting  themselves  an  escort  for  all  such. 
So  small  was  the  beginning  of  an  Order  which  in  200  years  became 
the  wealthiest,  most  powerful,  and,  unless  history  belies  them,  the 
most  licentious  organization  of  monks  the  world  has  ever  seen. 

The  name  Knights  Templars  was  derived  from  the  circumstance 
that  the  buildings  allotted  to  the  valiant  and  magnanimous  Order 
were  contiguous  to  the  Temple  and  in  the  same  enclosure ;  while 
those, occupied  by  the  Knights  of  St.  John  were  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
west,  upon  the  adjacent  hill.  These  buildings,  it  is  claimed,  are  the 
eame  now  styled  Mosk-el-Aksa,  on  the  southern  verge  of  the  great 
platform,  and  about  500  feet  from  the  site  of  King  Solomon's 
Temple. 

The  fortified   places  attributed   to    the  architectural  energy  and 


8ALADIN.  505 

skill  of  the  Crusaders  are  seen  in  many  parts  of  the  country,  and  at 
least  a  portion  of  these  are  accredited  to  the  Knights  Templars.  The 
churches  at  Lydda  and  Gibon,  the  Castles  of  Safed  and  Tibnin,  the 
ruined  forts  at  Masada  and  Kerak,  the  great  edifices  on  the  sea  near 
Caesarea,  and  very  many  other  constructions,  are  referable  to  these 
working  and  fighting  Knights. 

The  almost  entire  destruction  of  the  Order  occurred  in  July,  1187, 
on  Mount  Hattin,  near  the  western  shore  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee.  In 
a  great  battle  with  the  Saracens  commanded  by  Saladin  in  person, 
the  Christian  hosts  were  defeated,  nearly  all  of  them  slain  upon  the 
field,  and  the  remainder  inhumanly  butchered  by  the  Sultan  him- 
self or  in  his  immediate  presence.  The  description  of  this  battle, 
one  of  the  most  desperate  on  record,  has  occupied  the  pen  of  Mi- 
chau,  Prof.  Kobinson,  and  other  writers  of  eminence,  but  the  story 
in  all  its  heroic  details  is  yet  to  be  written.  Though  treachery 
had  paralyzed  the  hearts  of  the  Christian  warriors,  excessive  heat 
unnerved  them,  and  the  want  of  water  parched  their  vitals  and 
glazed  their  eyes  with  despair,  yet  the  innate  valor  of  the  Knights 
and  the  chivalric  lessons  instilled  by  their  Order,  held  them  up; 
they  clung  to  the  sacred  relic  which  was  their  banner,  to  the  very 
last,  and  fell  one  by  one  around  it,  until  scarcely  a  man  was  left. 
The  mountain-top  which  twelve  centuries  before  had  been  the  pulpit 
from  which  were  heard  those  divinest  utterances,  "  Blessed  are  they 
that  mourn,  the  pure  in  heart,  the  peace-makers,  the  meek,  the  mer- 
ciful," was  covered  by  the  bodies  of  those  who  died  for  the  Cross. 

I  have  written  a  summary  of  their  history  in  an  article  entitled 

SALADIN,  THE   ARAB    CONQUEROR. 

The  Sultan  Saladin  sprung  from  a  mountain  stock  beyond  the 
Tigris.  His  father  was  a  soldier  of  fortune,  of  high  rank  in  the  ser- 
vice of  the  Sultan  of  Bagdad.  Being  obliged  to  flee  from  Bagdad,  in 
consequence  of  a  personal  altercation  with  an  officer  of  justice,  he 
joined  JSToureddin,  Sultan  of  the  Attabeks  of  Syria,  against  the 
Christians.  Here  the  young  Saladin  began  his  career,  which  at  first 
promised  but  little,  as  he  was  addicted  to  dissipation,  and  seemed 
averse  to  employment.  His  first  military  fame  was  acquired  during 
the  defence  of  Alexandria,  in  Egypt,  and  this  led  to  his  appointment 
to  the  post  of  vizier.  This  position  called  forth  the  best  traits  of 
his  character;  his  gravity,  liberality,  and  austerity  of 
marked  him  at  once  as  the  genius  of  the  age. 


506  ANARCHY    IN   GOVERNMENT. 

At  the  death  of  the  Sultan  Noureddin,  Saladin  was  made  his  suc- 
cessor. 

At  the  death  of  King  Amaury,  of  Jerusalem,  he  was  succeeded  by 
Baldwin  IV.,  a  leper  in  person,  and  an  obstinate,  intractable  man, 
quite  unfit  for  the  station.  Becoming  blind  from  his  disease,  he  re- 
signed the  crown  to  Guy,  of  Lusignan,  whose  only  traits  of  char- 
acter were  haughtiness  and  most  disgusting  pride.  Thus,  at  the  very 
time  when  the  Christian  empire  in  Palestine  demanded  its  best  de- 
fender, seeing  that  no  such  foe  as  Saladin  had  ever  before  opposed 
it,  the  crown  was  held  by  the  most  incompetent  king  of  the  entire 
series.  A  truce,  however, was  entered  into  with  Saladin,  which,  had  not 
the  folly  of  one  of  the  Crusaders  broken  it,  might  have  been  main- 
tained long  enough  to  strengthen  all  their  defences,  and  even  perpet- 
uate the  Christian  power. 

The  circumstances  which  led  to  the  renewal  of  the  war  and  the  de- 
struction of  the  Christian  kingdom  were  these:  Renaud,  Count  de  Chat- 
illon,  was  lord  of  Kerak  and  other  castles  in  that  vicinity,  where  he  had 
associated  with  him  a  great  number  of  Templar  Knights.  Refusing 
to  acknowledge  the  truce  with  Saladin,  he  plundered  the  Mohamme- 
dan caravans  on  their  way  to  Mecca,  imprisoned  women  and  children, 
and  massacred  unarmed  men.  The  complaints  of  Saladin  were  dis- 
regarded, nor  could  the  commands  of  King  Guy  himself  put  a  stop 
to  these  outrages.  Then  Saladin  declared  war  in  bitter  earnest, 
ravaged  Galilee,  besieged  Beyrout,  and  advancing  toward  the  castle 
of  Kerak,  had  nearly  taken  the  place.  Failing  in  this,  he  burned 
Nablous  and  Samaria. 

The  Christian  lords  at  this  time  were  in  a  most  frightful  state  of 
anarchy  among  themselves.  The  kingdom  was  covered  with  strong 
castles,  the  commanders  of  which  scarcely  recognized  the  authority 
of  the  king  himself.  The  barons  made  war  and  peace  at  their  own 
pleasure.  The  Knights  Templars,  the  Knights  Hospitallers,  and  the 
other  military  Orders  were  divided  among  themselves,  and  sometimes 
shed  their  blood  in  quarrels  fatal  to  the  cause  of  the  Christians.  Dis- 
cipline had  degenerated  in  the  camp,  the  warriors  still  displaying  their 
natural  bravery.  None  knew  whom  to  obey  or  to  command. 

Amidst  all  these  calamitous  circumstances,  King  Baldwin  IV.,  who 
had  taken  away  the  authority  conferred  upon  Guy,  died.  His  son, 
Baldwin  V.,  followed  him  speedily  to  the  grave.  Again  Guy,  of  Lu- 
signan,  assumed  the  crown,  his  haughtiness  and  severity  being  in- 
creased by  the  vicissitudes  of  his  career.  He  made  war  with  Bald- 


THE  COUNCIL  OF  WAR.  507 

win,  Count  of  Tiberias,  and  the  disorder  and  agitation  of  the  king- 
dom  became  greater  than  ever. 

All  this  was  made  available  to  the  revenge  of  Saladin. .-  He  gained 
a  victory  in  Galilee,  May  1,  1167,  and  destroyed  five  hundred 
Knights  of  the  two  Orders.  The  terror  which  this  sanguinary  de- 
feat created,  appeased  for  a  while  the  discords  of  the  country.  The 
King  became  reconciled  to  Baldwin,  and  the  two  swore  in  the  pres- 
ence of  all  the  people  at  Jerusalem,  to  fight  in  unison  for  the  herit- 
age of  Christ.  Saladin  had  crossed  the  Jordan  at  the  head  of  eighty 
thousand  horsemen,  and  was  advancing  around  the  northern  shores 
of  the  Sea  of  Galilee. 

At  a  council  of  war  held  at  Jerusalem,  it  was  agreed  that  the 
Christian  forces  should  rendezvous  on  the  plain  of  Sepphoris,  a  few 
miles  north  of  Nazareth.  Here  they  came  from  every  direction,  and 
soon  an  army  of  fifty  thousand,  embracing  the  Kights  of  the  three 
Orders,  the  troops  of  the  King  and  the  nobles,  the  garrisons  of  the 
cities,  and  all  Christians  able  to  bear  arms,  was  assembled.  The 
wood  of  the  true  cross,  which  had  so  often  animated  the  Christians, 
was  brought  from  Jerusalem,  and  intrusted  to  the  keeping  of  the 
army. 

A  council  of  war  was  held  at  Sepphoris,  July  3, 1187,  and  it  was 
resolved,  only  the  Grand  Master  of  the  Templars  dissenting,  to  re- 
main in  camp  and  await  the  attack  of  Saladin  there.  Had  this  plan 
been  maintained,  doubtless  the  result  would  have  been  favorable  to 
the  Christians;  but  the  fickle  King  Guy,  changing  his  mind  a  few 
hours  afterward,  caused  the  advance  to  be  signalled  at  midnight  and 
the  camp  to  be  broken  up.  A  few  hours  brought  the  army  in  sight 
of  the  enemy,  strongly  posted  on  the  hills  between  them  and  the  Sea 
of  Galilee.  It  was  too  late  to  retreat,  and  the  daring  resolution  was 
formed  of  cutting  a  passage  through  them  to  the  waters  in  their  rear. 
A  desperate  contest  ensued,  in  which  Saladin  had  the  advantage, 
when  night  put  an  end  to  the  conflict. 

The  hours  of  darkness  were  full  of  hope  to  the  Saracens;  but  sad 
and  sinister  presentiments  deprived  the  Christians  of  their  courage. 
Though  their  camps  resounded  with  the  noise  of  drums  and  trum- 
pets, it  was  only  to  increase  their  alarm.  Daylight  was  the  signal  for 
their  utter  destruction.  Surrounded  upon  all  sides,  they  could  only  s< 
their  lives  dearly.  In  their  despair  they  endeavored  to  pierce  through 
the  battalions  of  the  enemy,  but  everywhere  were  met  with  an  invinci- 
ble  resistance.  Consumed  with  thirst,  faint  with  hunger,  they  saw  noth- 


508  THE   DISASTER. 

ing  around  them  but  burning  rocks  and  the  sparkling  swords  of  their 
enemies.  At  the  close  of  the  day,  only  the  Knights  of  St.  John  and  the 
Temple  were  left  of  all  that  mighty  host  These  had  performed  prod- 
igies of  valor  from  the  break  of  day.  Their  standard-bearer,  the  Bishop 
of  Ptolemais,  was  killed.  He  was  succeeded  by  the  Bishop  of  Lydda, 
who  was  taken  prisoner  and  the  cross  captured.  Not  until  then  did 
these  good  swords  become  paralyzed.  Then  the  King  was  taken,  with 
Geoffrey,  Grand  Master  of  the  Templars,  the  Count  of  Chatillon,  whose 
crimes  had  brought  this  sure  ruin  upon  the  land,  and  others  of  the  most 
illustrious  Knights  of  Palestine.  Only  Count  Raymond,  Prince  Bo- 
hemond  of  Antioch,  Renaud  of  Sidon,  the  young  Count  of  Tiberias, 
and  a  small  number  of  soldiers,  escaped.  The  prisoners  were  kept  in 
custody  until  next  day,  when  the  larger  number  of  them  were  mas- 
sacred by  the  command  of  Saladin  and  in  his  own  presence. 
f  The  cities  of  Palestine  soon  fell  into  his  hands.  Tiberias,  Ptole- 
mais, Nablous,  Jericho,  Ramleh,  Caesarea,  Joppa,  Arsuf,  and  Bey- 
rout,  soon  flaunted  the  yellow  standards  of  Saladin  upon  their  walls. 
Asculon  and  Gaza  followed ;  Emmaus  surrendered  without  a  strug- 
gle, and  in  October,  scarcely  three  months  from  that  dreadful  day  at 
Hattin,  Jerusalem  capitulated  to  his  power. 

To  establish  a  just  relationship  between  the  worthy  men  of  "  the 
Trowel  and  Sword"  of  the  present  day,  I  place  here  the  names  of  ten 
Freemasons,  equally  worthy  and  not  less  celebrated:  James  Penn, 
Giles  M.  Hillyer,  Henry  Wingate,  Thomas  Ware,  Thomas  Todd,  J. 
H.  Davis,  EL  B.  Parsons,  William  N.  Howe,  J.  A.  Dougherty,  F.  S. 
Carrington. 

Pushing  still  eastward,  I  await  with  warmest  anticipations  my  first 
view  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee.  My  advice  to  a  Christian  traveller,  whose 
stay  in  Palestine  is  limited  to  a  week  (and  this  is  the  maximum  of 
time  allotted  by  nineteen-twentieths  of  American  tourists  to  the 
Lands  of  the  Bible ;  three  months  to  Europe,  but  seven  days  to  Pal- 
estine!)— my  advice  to  such  is  to  land  at  Caiffa,  at  the  foot  of 
Mount  Carmel,  hasten  thence  to  Nazareth  and  the  Sea  of  Galilee, 
and  give  all  attention  to  this  region.  Of  Jerusalem  and  the  Dead 
Sea,  you  can  read  all  that  is  to  be  said ;  but  the  Sea  of  Galilee  you 
must  see  for  yourself,  to  form  a  true  idea  of  its  beauty.  Compara- 
tively few  visit  this  region  of  Syria,  and  the  field  for  exploration  is, 
therefore,  fresh  and  inviting.  It  is  the  place  of  our  Saviour's  life  and 
principal  labors,  and  is,  therefore,  full  of  historical  interest.  It  is 
tiho  most  fruitful  field  of  the  botanist,  mineralogist,  and  ichthyologist 


FIRST   VIEW   OF   GALILEE.  509 

that  Palestine  affords,  and  will,  therefore,  abundantly  stock  the 
album,  the  box,  and  the  note-book  of  the  scientific  traveller.  Being 
remote  from  the  customary  routes  and  haunts  of  travellers,  its  people 
are  less  sophisticated,  have  suffered  fewer  changes  in  costume  and 
manners,  and  are  less  greedy  than  those  around  Jerusalem,  Damas- 
.cus,  etc.  In  the  annoyances  of  beggars,  nowhere  so  pertinacious  and 
numerous  as  about  Jerusalem,  you  will  suffer  but  little  in  Galilee. 

Glorious  old  Hermon  lifted  his  cheerful  forehead  above  the  clouds 
and  threw  the  full  light  of  his  snowy  front  upon  me,  on  the  left 
hand,  as  I  rode  forward ;  hill  after  hill  that  rose  upon  my  path  was 
surmounted,  but  still  no  Sea.  I  should  have  feared  that  we  had 
taken  the  wrong  pathway,  only  that  I  knew  too  well  the  points  of 
the  compass.  I  found  two  cisterns  that  travellers  describe  "  covered 
with  large  perforated  stones  much  worn  by  the  friction  of  the  ropes.** 
Stones  were  now  piled  thickly  around  me — black  basalt,  suggestive 
of  millstones,  and  the  Hauran,  and  metaraorphic  geology,  and  cur- 
rents of  melted  lava,  and  all  that  sort  of  thing.  My  servant  Hassan 
now  imparted  to  me  a  fact  which  he  had  acquired  from  a  fellah  upon 
the  way,  viz  :  that  amongst  these  basaltic  rocks  snakes  abound.  (He 
calls  them  in  Arabic  by  some  guttural  word.)  It  may  be  so.  Per- 
haps the  rich  disintegrated  basaltic  soil  produces  plants  whose  seeds 
attract  mice,  moles,  and  other  vermin ;  and  the  mice  attract  the 
snakes.  Such  is  the  chain  of  connection  woven  by  nature.  This  idea 
seemed  original  with  myself,  but  since  Darwin's  last  book  is  issued  I 
find  a  similar  thought.  Darwin  says  that  the  more  cats  we  have,  the 
fewer  will  be  the  mice ;  the  fewer  the  mice,  the  more  bumble-bees ; 
the  more  bumble-bees,  the  more  clover ;  the  more  clover,  the  more 
honey.  Ergo,  the  more  cats,  the  more  honey !  Q.E.D.  Dr.  Robinson 
says  he  started  a  wild  hog  here ;  but  the  only  specimens  of  the  hog 
family  that  I  saw  in  Palestine  were  some  wild  pigs  amongst  the  thick 
rock-heaps  near  Gebal,  six  weeks  ago. 

At  last,  and  suddenly,  the  calm  blue  basin  slumbering  in  placid 
sweetness  beneath  its  surrounding  wall  of  hills  burst  upon  me,  and 
'  I  found  myself  looking  down  upon  the  hallowed  scenes  of  the  Lord's 
ministry.  I  was  on  the  brow  of  a  very  steep  hill,  across  which  the 
wind  from  the  heights  on  the  opposite  sides  of  the  Sea  blew  fresh 
and  cool.  Below  me  was  a  narrow  plain  sloping  to  the  Sea,  whose 
beach  I  could  trace  to  its  northern  extremity.  At  my  feet  lay  the 
town  of  Tiberias,  the  only  remaining  town  on  its  shores,  enclosed  by 
crumbling  fortifications,  with  shattered  but  once  massive  round 


510  SEARCH    FOR   QUARTERS. 

bastions;  the  only  remaining  town  of  nine  large  cities  and  nearly 
twenty  flourishing  villages  that  once  fringed  this  beautiful  Lake  of 
Gennesaret. 

At  that  first  grand  and  resplendent  view  of  what  will  ever  be  to 
me  the  most  memorable  portion  of  the  earth's  surface,  I  burst  forth, 
involuntarily,  with  the  song  I  had  learned  three  months  before, 
while  lying  sick  in  my  berth  upon  the  Atlantic  steamer,  entitled 
"  Jesus  by  the  Sea ;"  nor  am  I  ashamed  to  acknowledge  that  until  I 
finally  lost  sight  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee,  three  days  later,  on  the  heights 
north  of  Safed,  that  melody  and  those  words  occupied  my  mind  as 
no  words  and  melody  had  ever  done  before. 

The  breeze  blew  so  freshly  upon  the  summit  of  that  hill  above 
Tiberias,  and  indeed  imparted  so  grateful  a  coolness  to  my  blood,  that 
I  quite  forgot  the  warning  of  Mr.  Zellner,  the  English  Missionary  at 
Nazareth,  who  had  kindly  taken  the  trouble  that  morning  of  writing 
me  a  note  before  breakfast,  counselling  me  not  to  go  to  Tiberias  on 
account  of  the  excessive  heats  and  the  consequent  danger  of  fevers. 
Looking  down  upon  the  sparkling  sea,  it  was  hard  to  conceive  any 
thought  but  that  of  coolness.  But  I  soon  found  the  truth  of  Mr 
Zellner's  prediction.  For,  descending  hy  tha  zigzag  pathway,  I  had 
scarcely  reached  the  walls  of  Tiberias  Avhen  my  lungs  were  so  op- 
pressed with  the  heat  that  I  could  scarcely  breathe,  and  I  was  forcibly 
reminded  of  what  I  had  experienced  at  the  Dead  Sea,  ten  days  before. 
I  am  not  prepared  to  say  what  is -the  hottest  place  on  the  surface  of 
the  earth,  but  my  own  observations  would  dictate  that  if  not  Tiberias, 
it  is  Jericho  !  No  wonder  the  Arabs  call  the  place  Tibereeah  :  I  should 
soon  call  it  so  too,  were  my  lot  cast  there  ! 

The  city  of  Tiberias  was  almost  totally  destroyed  by  an  earthquake, 
January  1,  1837.  The  walls  then  thrown  down  have  never  been 
rebuilt ;  and  the  northern  quarter  of  the  city,  occupied  chiefly  by 
Mohammedans,  still  lies  in  ruins,  illustrating  that  pleasant  feature 
of  Turkish  character,  "  they  build,  but  never  rebu^d."  As  I  entered 
the  city,  crossing  a  prostrated  marble  column,  once  the  subject  of 
artistic  skill  in  the  distant  quarries  of  Paros,  I  observed  a  large  open 
space,  where  this  portion  of  the  Tiberians  had  lived. 

My  search  for  quarters  was  at  first  a  failure.  I  was  taken  to  the 
Latin  convent,  a  cool  but  not  over-cleanly  place,  and  regaled  with 
lemonade  (never  lemonade  like  that  lemonade)  by  the  one  monk  who 
kept  it,  but  for  some  reason  (imparted,  no  doubt,  to  Hassan,  bat 
never  comprehended  by  me),  his  reverence  declined  to  accommodate 


THE   BEAUTIFUL  SEA.  *  51] 

me  further.  In  vain  I  expostulated  at  being  ejected  from  that  apart- 
ment,  whose  stone  walls,  six  feet  thick,  had  reduced  the  thermometer 
to  sixty  degrees,  into  the  burning,  fiery  furnace  of  the  street  of  Ti- 
berias, where  Fahrenheit  unmistakably  rose  to  115,  with  "  an  upward 
tendency."  In  vain  I  protested.  The  gentleman  with  the  cable-tow 
four  times  around  his  body  had  a  heart  more  indurated  than  granite, 
and  politely  but  firmly  insisted  on  my  leaving  him.  Could  it  have 
been  that  his  supply  of  lemonade  was  threatened  ? 

But,  after  all,  my  departure  from  that  one-horse  convent  was  for 
the  better,  for  Hassan  secured  for  me  the  house  of  Mr.  Wiseman,  a 
Hebrew  gentleman,  whose  name  is  given  by  travellers.  It  is  a  large, 
substantial  room,  about  twenty-five  feet  square,  with  stone  floors,  and 
walls  immensely  thick,  with  the  additional  advantage  of  having  ex- 
tracts from  the  Hebrew  Bible  nailed  on  the  door-posts.  For  ten 
francs  a  day  I  secured  the  whole  house,  three  meals  a  day  for  two  of 
us,  and  the  Hebrew  inscriptions  thrown  in.  Wiseman  and  his  wise 
woman  and  his  three  (married)  wise  daughters,  besides  the  rest  of  his 
Solomonic  offspring,  slept  outside  in  the  court  of  the  house,  and 
never  disturbed  me  during  my  stay.  The  meals  were  regularly 
served  (and  they  were  ample  and  good),  and  all  things  were  agree- 
able. 

And  now,  being  comfortably  located  by  the  Sea  of  Galilee,  let  us 
attempt  a  description.  The  names  scripturally  applied  to  this  beau- 
tiful sheet  of  water  are — Sea  of  Genne-saret  (Luke  v.  1,  1  Maccabees 
xi.  67) ;  Sea  of  Chinnereth  and  Cinneroth  (Numbers  xxxiv.  11,  Joshua 
xii.  3) ;  Sea  of  Galilee  (Matthew  iv.  18,  Mark  vii.  31,  John  vi.  1) ;  and 
the  Sea  of  Tiberias  (John  vi.  1).  The  native  name  at  present  is 
Bohr  Tubariyeh,  or  Sea  of  Tiberias.  It  is  of  an  oval  shape,  about 
thirteen  miles  long,  and  six  broad.  The  Eiver  Jordan  runs  in  near 
the  northeast  corner,  and  passes  out  near  the  southwest  corner.  In 
its  relation  to  that  river,  it  is  a  mere  expansion  of  its  bed,  just  such 
a  sheet  of  water  as  the  Jordan  would  form  at  any  other  part  of  its 
long  course,  did  the  hills  recede  sufficiently  from  each  other  to  make 
such  an  expansion.  Its  area  is  about  sixty  square  miles. 

The  excessive  heat  of  Tiberias  and  the  whole  locality  is  accounted 
for  by  the  fact  that  the  Sea  of  Galilee  is  700  feet  below  the  level  of 
the  Mediterranean.  In  other  words,  were  a  canal  opened  to  connect 
the  two  bodies  of  water,  this  Sea  would  be  filled  to  the  depth  of  70C 
feet,  covering  the  sites  of  Tiberias,  Medjel,  and  all  the  little  plains 
around  the  northwestern  corner  of  the  Sea.  A  person  going  from 


512  *  THE   OLEANDEB. 

this  place  to  the  Dead  Sea  is  actually  travelling  toward  the  centre  of 
the  earth,  and  at  pretty  rapid  rate  too ! 

On  the  east  of  the  Sea  the  mountains  rise  about  2,000  feet,  without 
trees  or  grass,  and  are  deeply  furrowed  by  ravines.  All  the  cliffs  and 
rocks  around  the  Sea  are  mostly  a  hard,  porous  basalt,  giving  a  vol- 
canic appearance  to  the  whole  basin.  The  water  is  sweet,  cool,  and 
transparent  The  beach  is  everywhere  pebbly,  and  has  a  beautiful 
sparkling  look  under  the  bright  sun.  Fish  of  fourteen  species  greatly 
abound,  but  the  fishery  is  sadly  neglected.  A  few  men,  stripped 
naked,  stand  on  the  points  of  rocks,  as  I  had  seen  them  doing  along 
the  Mediterranean  coast,  and  throw  hand-nets  over  the  fish  as  they 
approach.  Writers,  also,  describe  a  method  of  catching  the  fish  by 
poisoning  with  bi-chloride  of  mercury,  but  of  this  I  saw  nothing. 

Toward  evening  I  walked  down  the  beach  south  of  the  town  of 
Tiberias,  and  saw  with  pleasure  that  the  peculiar  shell  of  the  Sea  of 
Galilee  can  be  gathered  there  in  abundance.  It  is  a  small  purple 
shell  that  adheres  to  the  pebbles  in  shallow  water.  All  the  dead  shells 
are  perforated  by  a  borer  which  has  unceremoniously  intruded  in  the 
sanctum  sanctorum  of  their  mysteries  and  destroyed  them.  The 
water  shelves  off  so  gradually  from  the  shore  that  a  man  can  wade, 
in  places,  for  a  hundred  yards  before  going  out  of  his  depth.  In  pass- 
ing along  this  side  of  the  town,  I  observed  the  many  traces  of  ruins 
described  by  Dr.  Robinson  and  others,  which  evidently  belonged  to 
the  ancient  city,  and  proved  that  it  extended  much  farther  south 
than  at  present.  These  ruins  consist  mostly  of  foundations,  with 
traces  of  walls,  heaps  of  stones,  and  a  thick  wall  for  some  distance 
along  the  Sea.  Near  the  middle  lie  several  scattered  columns  of  gray 
granite,  twelve  or  fifteen  feet  long,  and  at  some  distance  a  single  soli- 
tary column  is  still  standing.  Among  the  threshing-floors  on  the 
west  side  of  the  town  are  two  blocks  of  a  column  of  polished  red 
Syenite  granite,  about  three  feet  in  diameter. 

The  next  morning  I  rode  down  the  beach  nearly  to  the  point  whei 
the  Jordan  emerges  from  the  Sea,  and  took  a  bath  in  the  sweet,  trans 
parent  water.  Here  the  shore  presents  a  hedge  of  oleanders  (callec 
by  the  natives  DifleJi),  now  in  their  fullest  bloom.  This  shrub  grows 
in  the  torrid  climate  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee  to  the  height  of  fifteen 
or  twenty  feet,  and  is  crowded  with  blossoms  of  a  massiveness  anc 
size  that  I  had  no  conception  of.  It  is  worth  going  all  the  way 
Galilee  to  view  the  oleander  hedges  in  the  month  of  May. 

In  this  morning's  ramble  the  Hot  Baths  constitute  a  prominent 


HOT   BATH&  %  513 

object.  They  are  the  first  I  had  ever  seen.  They  flow  out,  some 
four  of  them,  from  black  and  brittle  sulphurous  rocks,  and  elevate 
the  mercury  in  the  thermometer  to  144°  Fahrenheit,  I  could  not  bear 
to  dip  my  hand  in  it,  except  with  a  hasty  withdrawal ;  and  an  elaborate 
attempt  to  immerse  my  naked  foot  in  one  of  the  springs,  nearly  cost 
me  my  toe-nails.  The  taste  is  excessively  salt  and  bitter,  quite  aa 
much  so,  I  think,  as  the  water  of  the  Dead  Sea,  and  there  is  a  strong 
smell  of  sulphur  about  it.  Crawfish,  that  some  one  had  thrown  in' 
the  springs,  lie  at  the  bottom,  red  as  boiled  lobsters.  The  water  de- 
posits a  sediment  as  it  runs  down  to  the  sea.  Evidently  the  springs 
contain  different  chemical  constituents,  for  the  sediment  from  one 
spring  is  white,  from  another  greenish,  from  another  reddish  yellow,  etc. 

Over  the  most  northern  of  the  springs  is  a  building,  now  wretch- 
edly dilapidated,  which  was  erected  by  Ibrahim  Pasha,  about  the 
year  1834.  The  birds  have  built  their  nests  in  the  ornamental  work 
of  the  cornices.  The  roof  leaks  in  every  part.  The  tesselated  pave- 
ment is  but  a  trap,  the  loose  tessera  flying  up  and  catching  the  feet 
A  miserable  rascal  controls  the  concern.  He  gave  me  the  stingiest 
cup  of  coffee  that  I  found  in  Syria,  and  grumbled  the  loudest  when 
I  paid  him  twice  as  much  as  it  was  worth.  Thirty-one  years  ago 
(1838),  Dr.  Robinson  described  this  bath-house  thus:  "The  princi- 
pal bath  occupies  the  centre  of  the  building,  consisting  of  a  large 
circular  apartment,  with  a  marble  pavement  all  around  the  circu- 
lar reservoir  in  the  middle,  to  which  several  steps  lead  down.  The 
roof  is  supported  by  columns.  In  the  same  buildiug  are  private 
rooms  for  wealthier  guests,  furnished  in  an  uncommonly  good  Oriental 
style.  In  one  was  a  large  and  beautiful  bath  of  white  marble."  I 
copy  this  sentence  to  enable  me  to  point  to  what  changes  thirty  years 
produce  in  Syria.  Now  all  is  dilapidated,  tumbling  to  pieces.  About 
a  hundred  yards  farther  south  some  one  is  erecting  a  really  hand- 
some stone  house,  just  at  the  base  of  the  hill.  If  designed  for  a  win- 
ter retreat  for  invalids,  I  can  heartily  recommend  it. 

I  was  forbidden  to  enter  the  innermost  bath-room  by  the  warning 
word  Hareem,  implying  that  women  were  bathing  that  morning.  A 
German  gentleman  had  pitched  his  tent  upon  a  rise  of  ground  a  few 
steps  northwest  of  the  bath-room,  and  although  he  had  no  language 
in  which  I  could  converse,  yet  his  evident  pleasure  at  meeting  me, 
and  the  sympathy  expressed  in  my  face  at  the  sight  of  his  swollen 
and  fovered  wrists,  made  the  call  mutually  profitable.  Surely,  if 
there  is  anything  in  hot  medicated  baths  for  rheumatic  diseases, 

oo 


614  SCANNING  THE  VIEW. 

that  poor,  lonely  foreigner  has  long  ere  this  gone  home  cured.  The 
baths  are  regarded  as  efficacious  in  rheumatic  complaints  and  cases 
of  debility,  and  are  visited  principally  in  July,  says  Dr.  Robinson,  bj 
people  from  all  parts  of  Syria.  They  are  mentioned  by  Josephus 
(Antiquities  xviii.  2,  3),  who  says  "there  are  warm-baths  at  a  little 
distance  from  Tiberias,  in  a  village  named  Emmaus;"  in  other  places 
he  speaks  of  them  more  definitely.  The  Arabic  name  for  them  is 
Hammam,  much  like  the  Hebrew  word ;  both  words  signify  warm- 
baths. 

What  a  speculation  it  would  be  for  a  few  really  energetic,  well- 
educated  physicians,  with  a  moderate  capital,  to  build  here  good 
bath-houses  and  a  hotel,  and  let  the  travelling  world  know  it  I  ven- 
ture to  predict  that  their  wildest  anticipations  would  be  realized  by 
a  rush  of  patients ;  and  if  the  waters  be  in  reality  as  efficacious  as 
they  have  been  deemed  for  nineteen  centuries,  the  fame  of  all  other 
hot-springs  in  the  world  would  be  eclipsed  by  them.  For  only  sit 
with  me  here  for  an  hour,  upon  this  spur  of  the  hills,  that  gives  so 
commanding  a  view  of  the  lake  and  its  surroundings;  open  the 
Bible  by  my  side,  and  let  us  read  together  all  the  wonderful  events 
associated  with  these  placid  waters  before  us.  .  It  is  enough  to  make 
a  sick  man  well  to  enjoy  the  scenery  and  the  history  together.  Shall 
I  point  them  out  to  you  ? 

Off  there  to  the  right  (as  we  sit  facing  the  east),  where  that  little 
boat  has  gone  across  the  lake  for  its  matutinal  load  of  wood,  is  the 
scene  of  that  memorable  event,  the  restoration  of  the  two  demoniacs 
who  lived  in  the  tombs.  Then  from  that  precipice  the  herd  of  swine 
ran  violently  down  into  the  sea  and  were  drowned.  Turning  more 
to  the  left,  we  discover  the  hallowed  spots  consecrated  by  the  pres- 
ence of  Him  who  went  there  at  night,  alone,  and  "  continued  all 
night  in  prayer."  Heaven  has  been  drawn  very  near  to  earth  on  the 
summits  of  those  black,  furrowed,  basaltic  knobs. 

"  Its  stars  on  heaven's  broad  pages  write 
How  Jesus  prayed  beneath  their  light." 

Turn  a  little  farther,  and  there  opens  before  us,  near  the  shore,  at 
the  northeastern  corner  of  the  Sea,  a  meadow-place,  tolerably  level 
This  is  the  traditional  spot  of  the  feeding  of  the  five  thousand  men 
with  a  few  loaves  and  fishes.  We  gaze  long  and  earnestly  upon  that 
meadow,  where  "there  was  much  grass."  There  is  a  clump  of  palm- 


THE   PANORAMA.  515 

trees,  appearing  very  picturesque  in  the  distance,  and  a  group  of 
Arab  tents. 

Still  more  to  the  left,  the  entrance  -of  the  Jordan  from  the  north 
is  distinctly  visible,  bearing  northeast  by  north,  with  the  plain  just 
described  extending  from  it  eastward.  We  know  that  only  a  mile  or 
two  up  that  river,  and  lying  upon  both  sides  of  it,  was  the  ancient 
city  of  Bethsaida  (the  "fish-town")  of  Peter,  James,  and  John. 
There  Jesus  healed  a  blind  man.  To-morrow  I  will  visit  a  site 
so  hallowed. 

Still  more  to  the  left,  and  the  projecting  point  of  Tell  Hum  is  seen. 
I  shall  find  it  to-morrow,  strewn  with  fragments  of  capitols,  friezes, 
and  sarcophagi,  and  shall  accept  the  theory  with  but  little  hesitation 
that  this  is  ancient  Capernaum. 

Turning  yet  more  to  the  left  (the  westward),  and  the  Plain  of 
Gennesaret  opens  before  us,  a  green,  marshy  plain,  called  by  the 
natives  El-Gliuweir,  whose  eastern  extremity  is  marked  by  the  build- 
ing styled  Klian  Minyeli,  supposed  by  Dr.  Robinson  to  be  Caper- 
naum, and  over  whose  northwestern  corner  hangs  the  "  city  that  is 
set  upon  a  hill,"  Safed.  Beyond  this  fertile  prairie,  and  high  above 
it,  towers  the  long  face  of  snowy  Hermon,  in  beautiful  relief,  against 
the  deep  blue  sky.  Although  forty  miles  distant  from  us,  it  seems 
scarcely  four.  This  plain  is  exceedingly  well  watered  and  produc- 
tive, the  soil  being  a  rich,  black  mould.  Josephus  describes  it  as  a 
paradise. 

Still  more  to  the  left,  and  the  little  village  of  El-Medjel  is  all  that 
remains  to  represent  ancient  Magdala,  the  house  of  Mary  Magda- 
lene; that  name  familiar  and  loved  throughout  Christendom.  It 
is  truly  but  a  squalid  and  filthy  collection  of  hovels,  with  one' watch- 
tower  to  remind  us  of  former  greatness. 

Stitt  more  to  the  left,  and  turning  so  far  that  the  town  of  Tiberias 
itself  will  be  on  our  right,  we  recall  the  Hill  of  Hattin,  famous  not 
only  for  the  disastrous  battle  of  July  5th,  1187,  alluded  to  on  a  pre- 
ceding page,  but  still  more  as  being  the  traditional  site  of  the  deliv- 
ery of  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount,  from  which,  indeed,  it  is  styled 
the  Mount  of  Beatitudes. 

Is  not  such  a  panorama  worth  of  a  visit?  For  my  own  part,  I 
could  have  spent  weeks,  and  even  months,  here — hot  as  it  was — 
lying  by  in  the  fierceness  of  noon,  and  giving  my  morning  and 
evening  hours  to  the  contemplation  of  scenes  so  dear  to  the  souls 
of  faithful  Christians.  It  is  enough  to  know  that  of  all  the  thirty-five 


516  MIRACLES    OF   JESUS. 

miracles  of  Jesus,  the  following  are  associated  with  this  place  and  ita 
immediate  vicinity : 

No.    3.  Miraculous  draught  of  fishes.     Luke  5th. 

No.    4.  Curing  the  demoniac.     Mark  1st. 

No.    5.  Curing  the  fevered  woman.     Matt  8th. 

No.    6.  Curing  the  leper.  (In  the  vicinity.)  Luke  5th. 

No.    7.  Curing  the  paralytic.     Matt.  9. 

No.    9.  Curing  the  withered  hand.     Luke  6th. 

No.  10.  Curing  the  centurion's  servant,     Luke  7th. 

No.  12.  Curing  the  blind  and  dumb  demoniac.     Luke  llth. 

No.  13.  Stilling  the  tempest.    Mark  4th. 

No.  14.  Curing  the  demoniacs.  (In  the  vicinity.)  Matt.  8th. 

No.  15.  Curing  the  woman  twelve  years  afflicted.     Luke  8th. 

No.  16.  Raising  the  damsel  from  the  dead.     Luke  8th 

No.  17.  Restoring  to  sight  two  blind  men.    Matt.  9th. 

No.  18.  Curing  a  dumb  demoniac.    Matt.  9th, 

No.  19.  Feeding  the  five  thousand.    John  6th. 

No.  20.  Walking  upon  the  sea.     John  6th. 

No.  22.  Curing  the  deaf  stammerer.  (Vicinity.)  Mark  7th. 

No.  23.  Feeding  the  four  thousand.  (Vicinity.)  Mark  8th. 

No.  24.  Curing  the  blind  man.     Luke  8th. 

No.  25.  Curing  the  lunatic  child.  (In  the  vicinity.)  Mark  9th. 

No.  26.  Securing  the  tax-money.     Matt.  17th. 

No.  35.  Miraculous  draught  of  fishes.    John  21st. 

Thus  we  see  that  twenty-two  out  of  the  thirty-five  miracles  (dis- 
tinctly defined)  of  our  Lord,  were  done  at  or  near  the  Sea  of  Galilee. 

Some  travellers  seem  to  regret  the  great  changes  time  has  produced 
here.  That  this  mean  little  town  of  Tiberias,  and  that  horrid  mass  of  filth 
yonder,  styled  El-Medjel,  should  represent  the  twenty-seven  flourishing 
towns  and  villages  of  the  days  of  Josephus,  is  certainly  suggestive  of 
mournful  reflections.  That  these  four  little  skiffs  should  represent  the 
great  fleets  of  Roman  times,  and  the  few  poor  naked  fishermen  the 
whole  fraternity  of  fishers  out  of  whom  so  many  of  the  disciples  were 
chosen,  gives  us  a  startling  contrast,  to  be  sure.  But  to  my  mind, 
there  is  a  fitness  in  all  this,  and  I  should  be  sorry  to  see  it  changed — 
in  my  day,  at  least.  That  great  pelican  yonder,  whose  young  ones  are 
waiting  in  their  nest  upon  Mount  Carmel,  forty  miles  away,  for  the 
load  of  fish  that  God  will  give  her  in  reward  for  her  maternal  toil — 
that  solitary  and  industrious  bird  is  to  me  the  best  emblem  of  the 
Sea  of  Galilee,  a  better  representative  than  the  new  generation  bus- 


CURRENT  OF  THE  JORDAN.  517 

tling  with  life  and  activity,  which  is  promised  us  by  enthusiastic 
writers,  in  the  days  when  "  Israel  shall  return,"  and  the  Land  of 
Promise  become  once  more  the  Land  of  Fulfilment. 

To  give  an  idea  of  the  extreme  swiftness  of  the  Jordan,  which 
runs  out  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee,  I  refer  to  a  book  which  was  very  cele- 
brated in  its  day,  Eothen,  by  Kingslake.  This  river  is  so  narrow,  and, 
to  an  American's  eye,  accustomed  to  look  across  great  streams,  so 
insignificant,  that  the  real  force  of  the  passage  commemorated  in 
the  Fellow-Crafts  degree  concerning  the  destruction  of  the  Ephraim- 
ites,  is  apt  to  be  lost  in  the  mind  of  the  traveller  when  he  views  it. 
The  inquirer  may  ask,  as  I  have  been  asked  many  times,  How  could 
a  mere  brook  of  sixty  or  eighty  feet  in  width  stop  the  despairing 
fugitives  who  had  home  before  them  and  destruction  behind  ?  Why 
not  spring  into  the  river,  and  swim  it  at  every  hazard  ? 

The  reply  is,  011  account  of  the  tremendous  current,  the  extreme 
swiftness  of  the  Jordan.  Falling  at  a  descent  of  more  than  ten  feet 
to  the  mile,  this  deep  and  rapid  river  is  a  very  river  of  death  to  an 
ordinary  swimmer.  To  swim  a  stream  is  a  rare  thing  in  warfare,  and 
causes  heavy  loss.  In  the  History  of  the  Crusades,  nearly  the  whole 
Christian  army  perished  before  Damietta,  in  an  attempt  to  swim  a 
narrow  canal,  not  swift  nor  deep.  In  fact,  it  is  admitted  by  all  mili- 
tary writers  that  crossing  a  stream  in  the  face  of  an  enemy  is  one  of 
the  gravest  of  problems.  But  to  our  quotations : 

The  author  of  the  work  referred  to  visited  Palestine  about  1840, 
and  made  some  highly  original  and  interesting  notes  of  his  journey. 
He  came  down  from  the  Sea  of  Galilee  with  a  company  of  servants, 
on  the  east  of  the  Jordan,  and  crossed  about  five  miles  from  its 
mouth.  Here,  he  says,  a  body  of  water  about  equal  to  the  Thames 
at  Eton,  but  confined  within  a  narrower  channel,  poured  down  in  a 
current  so  swift  and  heavy  that  the  idea  of  passing  with  laden  bag- 
gage-horses was  utterly  forbidden.  He  thinks  he  could  have  swum 
across  himself,  and  probably  might  have  swum  his  horse  over,  but  it 
would  have  been  madness  to  attempt  the  powerful  stream  at  that  - 
place.  Meeting  a  camp  of  Arabs,  however,  he  succeeded  by  their 
aid  in  crossing;  and  here  is  his  story: 

"  The  Arabs  now  went  to  work  in  right  earnest  to  effect  the  pas- 
sage of  the  river.  They  had  brought  with  them  a  great  number  of 
the  skins  which  they  use  for  carrying  water  in  the  desert ;  these  they 
filled  with  air,  and  fastened  several  of  them  to  small  boughs  which 
they  cut  from  the  banks  of  the  river.  In  this  way  they  constructed 


518  CROSSING   THE   RIVER. 

a  raft  not  more  than  about  four  feet  square,  but  rendered  buoyant 
by  the  inflated  skins  which  supported  it.  On  this  a  portion  of  my 
baggage  was  placed,  and  was  firmly  tied  to  it  by  the  cords  used  on 
my  pack-saddles.  The  little  raft,  with  its  weighty  cargo,  was  then 
gently  lifted  into  the  water,  and  I  had  the  satisfaction  to  see  that  it 
floated  well. 

"  Twelve  of  the  Arabs  now  stripped,  and  tied  inflated  skins  to 
their  loins ;  six  of  the  men  went  down  into  the  river,  got  in  front  of 
the  little  raft,  and  pulled  it  off  a  few  feet  from  the  bank.  The  other 
six  then  dashed  into  the  stream  with  loud  shouts,  and  swam  along 
after  the  raft,  pushing  it  from  behind.  Off  went  the  craft  in  capital 
style  at  first,  for  the  stream  was  easy  on  the  eastern  side;  but  I  saw 
that  the  tug  was  to  come,  for  the  main  torrent  swept  round  in  a 
bend  near  the  western  bank  of  the  river. 

"The  old  men,  with  their  long  gray  grisly  beards,  stood  shouting 
and  cheering,  praying  and  commanding.  At  length  the  raft  entered 
upon  the  difficult  part  of  its  course  ;  the  whirling  stream  seized  and 
twisted  it  about,  and  then  bore  it  rapidly  downward ;  the  swimmers 
flagged,  and  seemed  to  be  beat  in  the  struggle.  But  now  the  old  men 
on  the  bank,  with  their  rigid  arms  uplifted  straight,  sent  forth  a  cry 
and  a  shout  that  tore  the  wide  air  into  tatters.  The  swimmers,  one 
moment  before  so  blown  and  so  weary,  found  lungs  to  answer  the 
cry,  and  shouting  back  the  name  of  their  great  destroyer,  they  dashed 
on  through  the  torrent,  and  bore  the  raft  in  safety  to  the  western 
bank. 

Afterward  the  swimmers  returned  with  the  raft,  and  attached  to 
it  the  rest  of  my  baggage.  I  took  my  seat  upon  the  top  of  the  cargo, 
and  the  raft,  thus  laden,  passed  the  river  in  the  same  way  and  with 
the  same  struggle  as  before.  The  skins,  however,  not  being  perfectly 
air-tight,  had  lost  a  great  part  of  their  buoyancy,  so  that  I,  as  well 
as  the  luggage  that  passed  on  this  last  voyage,  got  wet  in  the  waters 
of  Jordan.  The  raft  could  not  be  trusted  for  another  trip,  and  the 
•rest  of  my  party  passed  the  river  in  a  different,  and  (for  them)  much 
safer  way.  Inflated  skins  were  fastened  to  their  loins,  and,  thus  sup- 
ported, they  were  tugged  across  by  Arabs  swimming  on  either  side  of 
them.  The  horses  and  mules  were  thrown  into  the  water,  and  forced 
to  swim  over ;  the  poor  beasts  had  a  hard  struggle  for  their  lives  in 
that  swift  stream,  and  I  thought  that  one  of  the  horses  would  have 
beon  Irowned,  for  he  was  too  weak  to  gain  a  footing  on  the  western 
bank,  and  the  stream  bore  him  down.  At  last,  however,  he  swam 


A    CALM,   BRIGHT  MORNING.  519 

back   to   the  side  from  which  he  had  come.    Before  dark  all  had 
passed  the  river." 

I  have  never  seen  anything  that  gives  so  good  an  idea  of  this  re- 
markable river  as  the  passage  cited. 

If,  as  is  believed,  the  national  peculiarities  of  the  Swiss,  Irish,  and 
other  airs  are  somehow  associated  with  the  natural  scenery  in  which 
they  originated,  and  amidst  which,  for  many  ages,  they  have  been 
played  and  sung,  it  would  be  a  question  of  no  small  interest — What 
was  the  character  of  the  melodies  that  once  vibrated  along  the  shores 
of  Galilee  ? 

This  thought  possessed  my  soul  that  calm,  bright  morning  in  May, 
1868,  when  I  left  the  village  of  Tiberias,  passed  through  its  broken 
walls,  and  rode  south,  along  the  pebbly  beach  of  the  charming  Sea  of 
Galilee.  On  my  right  the  basaltic  mountains  lifted  themselves  a 
thousand  feet  or  more,  showing  in  their  mighty  escarpments  num- 
berless tombs,  wherein  once  reposed  the  ashes  of  princes  and  rulers. 
On  the  left  was  that  most  beautiful  of  all  lakes,  so  intimately 
connected  with  the  life  of  the  Redeemer  of  man,  and  styled  the  Sea 
of  Galilee.  The  season  was  the  most  propitious.  The  oleanders 
which  line  the  shore,  and  lift  their  dense  foliage  to  the  height  of  fifteen 
or  twenty  feet,  were  full  of  blossoms,  fragrant  with  odors  and  melo- 
dious with  song.  The  waters  abound  with  fishes,  representing  many 
different  classes  in  ichthyology,  one  sort  of  which  lay  thickly,  almost 
touching  each  other,  at  the  margin  of  the  shore,  and  could  not  be 
persuaded,  so  tame  were  they,  that  man  was  their  natural  enemy. 
The  small  purplish  shell,  so  abundant  in  those  waters,  adhered  to 
every  pebble  along  the  beach,  rendering  it  an  easy  matter  for  the 
collector  to  fill  his  pouch  without  wetting  his  feet.  The  morning 
sun,  that  had  just  mounted  the  hills  of  Bashan,  began  to  throw  his 
rays  upon  the  glassy  surface  of  the  lake,  making  it  glow  like  a 
furnace,  and  startling  the  many  birds,  pelicans,  didappers,  etc.,  that 
had  been  solemnly  enjoying  their  matutinal  meal  out  of  the  abund- 
ance below.  The  shepherd  boys  were  calling  to  each  other  from  the. 
summit  of  one  ledge  to  another,  and  arousing  my  never-satiated 
astonishment  at  the  distance  at  which  sounds  can  be  heard  in  that 
clear  atmosphere. 

Amidst  the  profusion  of  novel  and  interesting  sights  and  sounds, 
the  question  occurred  to  my  mind  that  I  have  stated  in  the  para- 
graph above,  viz  :  "What  was  the  character  of  the  melodies  that 
vibrated  along  these  hallowed  shores  in  the  days  of  the  ancients  ? 


520  JESUS  BY   THE   SEA. 

Is  there  anything  in  the  music  of  our  time  analogous  to  it  ?  While 
considering  these  topics  of  inquiry,  my  voice  involuntarily  attuned 
itself  to  the  well-known  Sunday-school  air  written  by  Prof.  Root,  and 
known  as  "  Jesus  by  the  Sea." 

I  had  committed  to  memory  the  words  and  melody  of  this  pretty 
Bong  while  lying  in  my  berth  on  the  ocean  steamer  four  weeks  before. 
during  a  storm  at  sea.  The  stately  measures  had  attuned  themselves 
to  the  swash  of  the  ocean  billows,  to  the  songs  of  the  sailors,  to  the 
rush  of  steam,  to  the  rattling  of  cordage,  to  the  majestic  movements 
of  the  ship  itself.  It  had  become  indelibly  associated  in  my  mind 
with  all  the  sights  and  sounds  familiar  to  those  who  "go  down  to 
the  sea  in  ships,"  who  "do  business  in  the  great  waters."  The  day 
of  my  arrival  at  Tiberias,  as  my  longing  eyes  first  caught  sight  of 
that  most  beautiful  of  lakes  (the  Sea  of  Galilee),  I  had  formed  the 
determination,  so  far  as  in  me  lay,  to  associate  Jesus  Christ  with 
every  locality  around  its  shore  in  which  he  had  done  any  wonderful 
works.  Sitting  now  above  the  oleanders,  on  that  charming  May 
morning,  I  sang  the  first  verse : 

"  Oh !  I  love  to  think  of  Jesus  as  He  sat  beside  the  Sea, 
Where  the  waves  were  only  murmuring  on  the  strand ; 

When  He  sat  within  the  boat, 

On  the  silver  wave  afloat, 
While  He  taught  the  waiting  people  on  the  land. 

"  Oh !  I  love  to  think  of  Jesus  by  the  Sea, 

Oh!  I  love  to  think  of  Jesus  by  the  Sea; 
And  I  love  the  precious  word 
Which  He  spake  to  them  that  heard, 

While  He  taught  the  waiting  people  by  the  Sea !" 

The  location  of  this  passage  is  at  or  near  the  ancient  city  of  Caper- 
naum. In  the  13th  chapter  of  Matthew  we  learn  that  the  incident 
occurred  "  the  same  day"  in  which  He  performed  sundry  miracles 
at  Capernaum.  Writers  have  differed  as  to  the  exact  locality  of 
Capernaum ;  but  late  explorers  have  set  it,  as  my  own  conclusions 
do,  at  yonder  point  of  land,  two  miles  west  of  Jordan.  The  place  is 
heaped  up  with  masses  of  buildings  in  marble,  elegantly  carved,  and 
proving  that  this  was  once  the  emporium  of  the  Sea.  The  Scriptural 
words  upon  which  the  lines  are  founded  are:  "Great  multitudes  were 
gathered  together  with  Him,  so  that  He  went  into  a  ship,  and  sat ; 
and  the  whole  multitude  stood  still  on  the  shore"  (Matthew  xiii.  2). 


THE   SOSTG   AND   ITS   COMMENT.  521 

And  now  I  will  sing  tne  second  verse : 

"  Oh  !  I  love  to  think  of  Jesus  as  He  walked  upon  the  Sea, 
When  the  waves  were  rolling  fearfully  and  grand ; 
How  the  winds  and  waves  were  still, 
At  the  bidding  of  His  will, 
While  He  brought  His  loved  disciples  safe  to  land. 

"  Oh !  I  love  to  think  of  Jesus  by  the  Sea, 
Oh !  I  love  to  think  of  Jesus  by  the  Sea; 
How  He  walked  upon  the  wave, 
His  beloved  ones  to  save, 
While  He  brought  them  safely  o'er  the  stormy  sea. 

To  locate  the  scene  of  this  stupendous  miracle  we  have  only  to 
turn  the  eye  upon  that  meadow  place,  lying  around  the  mouth  of  the 
Jordan,  at  the  east  side,  now  the  location  of  an  Arab  encampment, 
whose  tents  we  can  see  at  this  distance.  There  is  the  hallowed  table 
where  the  Lord  fed  five  thousand  men  with  five  loaves  and  two 
fishes.  The  multitude  being  all  filled,  He  directed  His  disciples  to 
get  into  their  boat,  and  cross  over  to  the  plain  at  the  northeast  corner 
of  the  Sea,  called  "the  land  of  Gennesaret,"  now  yellow  with  its 
crops  of  wheat  and  barley,  and  musical  with  the  harvest  songs  of  the 
reapers,  as  I  shall  hear  when  I  cross  it  to-morrow.  Upon  that 
indentation  there  where  the  sea  washes  the  land,  occurred  the  miracle 
of  stilling  the  tempest,  although  not  at  the  same  period  of  time. 
The  placid  little  bay  presents  none  of  the  agitations  of  that  fearful 
hour;  but  we  know,  from  the  experience  of  travellers,  that  the  gusts 
which  rush  down  through  the  ravines  in  the  East  do  distract  the 
waters  precisely  as  in  Scriptural  days,  rendering  them  very  unsafe  for 
the  small  craft  that  still  sail  upon  the  Sea  of  Galilee. 

The  third  verse  will  now  have  my  attention : 

"  Oh !  I  love  to  think  of  Jesus  as  He  walked  beside  the  Sea, 
Where  the  fishers  spread  their  nets  upon  the  shore; 
How  He  bade  them  follow  Him, 
And  forsake  the  paths  of  sin, 
.      And  to  be  His  true  disciples  evermore. 

"  Oh !  I  love  to  think  of  Jesus  by  the  Sea, 
Oh !  I  love  to  think  of  Jesus  by  the  Sea ; 

And  I  long  to  leave  my  all, 

At  the  dear  Kedeemer's  call, 
And  His  true  disciple  evermore  to  be." 


522  THE   SONG   AND   ITS   COMMENT. 

Yonder  is  the  point  where  the  Jordan  runs  into  the  Sea.  Here 
'Jesus,  walking  by  the  Sea  of  Galilee,  saw  two  brethren,  Simon, 
called  Peter,  and  Andrew,  his  brother,  casting  a  net  into  the  sea ;  for 
they  were  fishers.  And  He  said  unto  them,  '  Follow  me,  and  I  will 
make  you  fishers  of  men.'  And  they  straightway  left  their  nets,  and 
followed  Him.  And  going  from  thence  He  saw  two  brethren,  James, 
the  son  of  Zebedee,  and  John,  his  brother,  in  a  ship  with  Zebedee 
their  father,  mending  their  nets ;  and  He  called  them.  And  they 
immediately  left  the  ship  and  their  father,  and  followed  Him" 
(Matthew  iv.  18-22).  The  same  record  is  given  in  Mark  i.  16-20,  and 
Luke  v.  1—11.  In  John  i.  44,  we  learn  that  "  Philip  was  of  Beth- 
saida,  the  city  of  Andrew  and  Peter."  This  Bethsaida  lay,  as  we 
know,  upon  both  sides  of  the  Jordan,  and  from  where  I  am  sitting 
my  eye  falls  upon  the  spot  where 

"  He  bade  them  follow  Him, 

And  forsake  the  paths  of  sin, 
And  to  be  His  true  disciples  evermore." 

And  so  the  entire  of  this  affecting  hymn  is  associated  with  the 
far-famed  Sea  of  Galilee.  The  person  who  wrote  it  must  have  viewed 
the  localities,  or  at  least  familiarized  himself  with  them  from  the  de- 
scription of  others.  So  long  as  I  live  I  shall  never  hear  it  without 
recalling  the  circumstance  named.  The  day  after,  I  went  around  on 
the  north  side,  as  far  as  to  the  Jordan ;  and  as  I  rode  through  fields 
of  barley,  or  crushed  the  shells  on  the  beach  under  my  horse's  feet, 
or  climbed  the  sharp  rocky  ridges  over  which  the  path  passes, 
or  wondered  at  the  magnificence  of  the  marble  ruins  of  Caper- 
naum, I  sang  over  and  over  those  beautiful  lines.  They  attuned 
themselves  to  every  sound  that  stirred  the  breezes  or  echoed  from 
the  cliffs  that  day;  to  the  harvest  song  of  the  Arab  reaper 
and  the  responses  of  the  Arab  gleaners;  to  the  dull  croonii 
of  the  pedestrian  met  in  the  stony  paths  traversed ;  in  the  sweet 
melody  of  the  bulbul  among  the  oleanders ;  in  the  chattering  of  the 
sparrows  as  they  thronged  their  sociable  nests  among  the  Spii 
Christi ;  in  the  cooing  of  the  pigeons  in  Wady  Hammam ;  in  the 
hoarse  shriek  of  the  fish-hawks,  swooping  down  upon  their  abundanl 
prey.  Let  the  Sea  of  Galilee  henceforth  be  consecrated  by  a 
glory,  that  of  Jesus  by  the  Sea  ! 


THINKING   OF  JE8U8. 

I  thought  of  Jesus  by  the  Sea 
Of  Galilee,  blue  Galilee : 

His  Sermon  blessed  its  peaceful  shore, 

He  stilled  its  tempests  by  His  power ; 

His  mightiest  deeds  He  wrought,  and  drew 
From,  fishers  here  His  chosen  few : 

Then,  as  I  bowed  the  knee, 
This  voice  from  Galilee  I  heard, 
'  The  Sea  is  holy  to  our  laboring  Lord !'  M 


523 


TIBERIAS    ANT)   GALILEK. 


CHAPTER  XXLJL 


TIBERIAS  TO  TYRE. 

HE  day  of  my  departure  from  Tiberias  was  hot  and  un 
pleasant,  Wednesday,  May  20,  1868,  will  be  associated 
in  my  memory  as  one  of  the  most  sultry  days  I  ever  expe- 
rienced. In  my  last  chapter,  I  gave  the  incidents  of  the 
ride  around  the  northern  shore  of  Lake  Gennesaret.  At 
the  mouth  of  the  Jordan  the  stone  is  basaltic,  black  under  the 
weather,  and  unsightly.  Such  material  has  more  than  once  given 
its  name  to  the  towns  of  which  it  is  composed.  Thus,  in  Sapor's 
time  (A.D.  359),  one  city  was  termed  Kara  Amid  from  this  circum- 
stance. 

About  noon  I  returned  to  the  northwest  corner  of  the  lake,  and 
there,  on  the  bank  of  a  cool,  sweet  stream  of  water,  embowered  in 
thickets  of  oleander  that  were  melodious  with  the  song  of  the  bulbul, 
I  had  my  frugal  dinner,  moistened  with  strong  coffee,  delicious  water, 
and  a  few  drops  of  arrakia,  a  fiery  article  distilled  from  dates,  and 
which  serves  the  place,  in  this  anti-bourbon  country,  of  whiskey. 
Just  above  me,  a  gang  of  laborers  were  at  work  draining  off  the 
water  from  the  spring-brooks,  in  dirt  channels,  dug  along  the  hill- 
sides, so  as  to  make  it  available  for  irrigation.  It  will  be  but  a  few 
weeks  now,  and  all  this  fertile  plain  of  Gennesaret  below  me  will  be, 
under  this  terrific  sun  of  summer,  baked  to  clods  of  iron.  Then  the 
sweet  waters  will  be  the  life  of  the  soil,  and  cucumbers,  melons,  anc 
other  gardenstuff  will  reward  the  work  of  these  native  engineer 
As  I  muse  over  my  scanty  diet,  how  fondly  do  such  passages  as  thes 
recur  to  my  mind :  "  Drought  and  heat  consume  the  snow  waters  ;r 
"  The  waters  are  dried  up,  they  are  gone  away  from  men ;"  "  As  the 
waters  fail  from  the  sea  and  the  flood  decayeth  and  drieth  up ;"  "  Tli€ 
stream  of  brooks  may  pass  away ;  what  time  they  wax  warm  thej 
vanish ;  when  it  is  hot  they  are  consumed  out  of  their  place ;"  anc 


RISING  THE   HILL-COUNTRY.  525 

many  other  expressions  from  Job,  who  probably  lived  in  the  country 
a  day's  ride  east  of  this,  where  water  is  the  life  of  the  earth. 

And  now  I  begin  to  climb  the  acclivity  for  Safed,that  "city  which 
is  set  upon  a  hill,"  so  far  above  me  in  the  north.  Many  a  halt  and 
"  last,  fond  look"  do  I  bestow  upon  the  sweet  lake  below  me,  which 
I  may  never  see  again.  The  whole  upper  margin  of  it  is  visible  here 
in  a  semicircle ;  and  as  I  mount  higher  and  higher,  it  opens  before 
me  even  to  its  southern  extremity.  Only  a  little  portion,  that  in 
which  the  Jordan  leaves  the  lake,  is  concealed  from  the  eye  by  the 
projecting  point  of  hills  just  below  Tiberias.  What  a  place  this 
would  have  been  to  occupy  (or,  no  doubt,  it  was  occupied  that  day 
by  a  crowd  of  terrified  refugees)  during  the  terrific  sea-fight  at  the 
southern  end,  when  Vespasian  destroyed  the  last  power  of  the  people 
of  this  region !  As  Josephus  describes  it,  the  country  must  have 
been  one  of  surpassing  beauty.  He  says  its  soil  was  so  fruitful  that 
all  sorts  of  trees  could  grow  upon  it,  and  names  walnuts,  palm-trees, 
fig-trees,  and  olives  as  representing  the  various  kinds  of  trees.  He 
uses  the  term  ambition  of  nature,  as  suggesting  the  happy  combina- 
tion of  such  diverse  fruits  and  plants  in  one  locality.  And  all  this 
had  been  subjected  to  fire  and  sword  by  the  Komans.  Every  town 
and  village  of  these  happy  valleys  had  been  taken  and  destroyed.  Of 
all  the  twenty-seven  that  had  encircled  this  beautiful  inland  sea,  the 
last  place  to  surrender  was  Tarichaea,  at  the  southwestern  corner. 
Many  of  the  inhabitants  of  this  devoted  place  got  on  board  their 
boats  and  sailed  to  the  opposite  shora  The  Romans  instantly  fitted 
up  a  number  of  vessels,  and  set  sail  in  pursuit  of  them.  The  sea- 
fight  was  but  one  unmitigated  slaughter,  until,  as  the  historian  says, 
"  the  lake  was  all  bloody  and  full  of  dead  bodies ;  not  one  of  the 
Jews  escaped."  The  sword  and  the  flood  consumed  that  day  more 
than  6,000  of  the  unhappy  people. 

Such  sights  as  these  give  interest  to  that  steep  ascent  toward  Safed. 
The  ridge  of  Hermon  on  the  north,  sprinkled  with  snow,  was  now  a 
grand  object,  and  in  his  quiet,  majestic  manner,  he  gazed  upon  the 
American  pilgrim  that  day.  A  deep  serenity  and  calw  pervaded  the 
scene.  No  wonder  the  rabbins  used  to  teach  that  "  God  loved  the 
Sea  of  Galilee  beyond  all  other  seas." 

The  road  begins  now  to  be  full  of  sharp  projections,  which  hurt 
the  horses'  feet,  and  one  of  them,  that  has  been  complaining  all  day, 
goes  almost  dead  lame.  It  must  be  a  bad  road,  indeed,  that  can 
daunt  one  of  those  Lebanon  horses,  almost  as  much  accustomed  to 
climbing  as  a  chimney-sweep. 


526  THE   LAND   OF   NAPHTALI. 

And  now  we  descend  again  to  a  long,  broad  valley,  that  once  formed 
a  part  of  the  possessions  of  Naphtali.  "What  splendid  land ;  what 
crops  an  American  farmer  could  make  here ;  "  how  beautiful  upon 
the  mountains "  must  have  appeared  this  noble  tribe  of  Naphtali ; 
how  proudly  must  the  array  "  of  a  thousand  captains,  and  with  them, 
with  shield  and  spear,  thirty  and  seven  thousand,"  have  borne  them- 
selves in  the  presence  of  Zebulun,  Issachar,  Manasseh,  Ephraim, 
Benjamin,  as  they  marched  southward,  through  the  territories  of 
those  tribes,  and  "  came  to  David  to  Hebron,"  "  ready  armed  to  the 
war,"  "  to  turn  the  kingdom  of  Saul  to  him,  according  to  the  word 
of  the  Lord  " !  (1  Chronicles  xii.)  Under  their  own  banner  of  "the 
bounding  hart,"  the  warriors  of  this  noble  but  remote  district  dis- 
played their  grandest  characteristics  under  their  own  great  hero, 
Barak,  when  "he  went  up  with  ten  thousand  men  at  his  feet"  to 
Mount  Tabor  (Judges  iv.),  and  met  the  hosts  of  Sisera  on  the  banks 
of  the  Kishon,  with  his  nine  hundred  chariots  of  iron,  destroying 
them  utterly,  until  "  there  was  not  a  man  left" 

What  a  rich  and  productive  soil !  Well  may  Josephus  describe  it 
as  "  full  of  plantations  of  trees  of  all  sorts,  so  fertile  as  to  invite  the 
most  slothful  to  cultivate  it."  But  although  the  most  slothful  are 
here  in  abundance,  yet  they  do  not  cultivate  it,  and  Naphtali  is  almost 
a  wilderness.  "Every  city  is  forsaken,  and  not  a  man  dwells  therein" 
(Jeremiah  iv.  29).  The  wild  bee  is  the  only  living  object  that  suggests 
the  good  emblem  of  the  beehive ;  except  it  may  be  a  hornet  (of  which 
the  Jewish  legend  affirms  that  Jive,  will  kill  a  man),  who  is  gathering 
materials  for  his  paper-mill  from  the  flocky  leaves  of  the  thistle  that 
grows  rank  in  this  fat  soil. 

Rising  again  from  this  deep  valley,  in  which  the  oak  or  terebinth 
shows  here  and  there  (though  mostly  destroyed  by  the  charcoal- 
makers  from  the  coast),  and  suggests  the  expression  of  Deborah's 
hymn,  "Naphtali  in  the  high  places  of  the  field,"  better  translated 
"Naphtali  is  a  towering  oak;  he  hath  a  goodly  crest"  (Judges  v.  18), 
— rising  from  this  valley,  I  gain  another  view  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee, 
and  yet  another,  never  seeming  any  more  distant  from  me,  although 
a  steady  movement  northward  of  hours  increases  the  interval  to 
many  miles.  Old  Hennon  before,  and  the  Sea  of  Galilee  behind,  ap- 
pear like  the  fixed  points"  in  a  dream,  which,  struggle  as  I  may,  I 
can  neither  approach  nor  recede  from. 

Going  down  a  long  and  sharp  descent,  I  now  observe  a  remarkable 
range  of  high  and  precipitous  rocks,  composed  of  reddish  sandstone, 


A   JEWISH   WEDDING.  52? 

OP  the  right.  The  openings  to  many  caverns  in  its  steep  walls  are 
plainly  to  be  seen.  These  are  said  formerly  to  have  been  occupied 
by  robbers;  but  as  I  passed  by,  the  only  rogues  that  looked  after  me 
were  the  eagles  hovering  around  the  summit  of  the  cliff,  intent,  I 
presumed,  upon  the  care  of  their  young,  or  perhaps  looking  after  the 
rabbits  that  might  naturally  be  expected  to  burrow  in  that  immense 
range  of  caves.  Great  masses  of  stone  have  been  detached  from  these 
cliffs  at  no  distant  period,  probably  by  earthquakes,  and  the  old  road- 
way is  changed.  This  is  the  only  instance  that  I  saw  in  Palestine 
of  the  removal  of  an  ancient  landmark.  The  ancient  road  of  Naph- 
tali,  which  ran  up  the  right-hand  side  of  the  valley,  now  goes  up  the 
left.  In  this  valley  is  a  fresh  stream  of  running  water,  springing 
from  a  copious  well,  the  oleander  blossoming  all  around.  On  the 
banks  of  this  delicious  water  couch,  a  party  of  Jews,  on  their  way 
from  their  holy  city  Safed  to  their  holy  city  Tiberias,  was  temporarily 
encamped,  and  a  merry  set  they  were.  Beating  little  tamborines, 
smoking,  merrily  conversing,  and  refreshing  themselves  with  fruits, 
and  possibly  something  stronger,  surely  this  cheerful  little  band  is 
the  happiest  party  that  all  Naphtali  can  now  produce. 

But  no  ;  a  few  miles  farther,  and  off  on  the  left  hand,  is  a  verita- 
ble picnic,  a  wedding  party  of  the  Hebrews,  enjoying  themselves  in 
the  most  uproarious  manner,  firing  muskets,  beating  drums,  and 
singing  all  sorts  of  epitlialamiums.  The  young  men,  as  we  approach 
Safed,  make  quite  a  display  of  themselves,  wearing  the  short,  close 
jacket  which  Dr.  Kobinson  describes,  "  with  embroidered  sleeves 
hanging  loose  from  the  shoulders,  the  back  of  the  coat  being  at  the 
same  time  ornamented  with  strips  of  cloth  of  another  color."  This, 
with  a  certain  peculiar  twist  of  their  white  turbans,  gives  them  quite 
a  jaunty  air.  The  women,  in  their  jewelry,  etc.,  abundantly  proved 
that  a  maid  cannot  forget  her  ornaments  nor  a  bride  her  attire  (Jere- 
miah ii.  32). 

At  last  I  rise  the  hill  on  which  Safed  is  situated,  and  begin  to 
enter  the  suburbs  of  another  one  of  the  Holy  Places  of  the  Jews. 
(Hebron,  Jerusalem,  and  Tiberias  are  the  other  three.)'    It  is  believed 
by  the  Jews  to  be  the  place  where  Jeremiah  hid  the  ark  at  the  national 
destruction  under  Nebuchadnezzar,  and  whence  the  Messiah  will 
come  first  at  his  appearing.     The  Scotch  Presbyterians  once  propose 
to  make  Safed  the  headquarters  of  Missionary  operations  in  tl 
parts,  as  its  climate  is  very  delightful,  even  in  the  heat  of  summer.  I 
feel  this  very  sensibly,  having  come  out  of  that  heated  atmospher 


528  SAFED. 

surrounding  the  Sea  of  Galilee  below  me.  By  contrast,  the  breezes 
are  cool  and  bracing.  Even  in  July  the  thermometer  at  noon  indi- 
cates but  76°  in  the  shade. 

At  first  I  feared  that  I  was  to  have  some  difficulty  in  the  way  of 
accommodations  at  Safed.  My  host  at  Tiberias  (Mr.  Wiseman)  had 
directed  Hassan,  my  head-servant,  to  take  me  to  the  quarters  of  the 
Austrian  Vice-Consul ;  but  that  gentleman  declined  to  receive  me. 
He,  however,  designated  another  person,  who  very  cheerfully  took  me 
in,  giving  up  his  whole  house  to  my  use,  according  to  the  custom  of 
these  Jewish  householders,  and  sleeping  with  his  own  family  upon 
the  pavement  in  the  court-yard  outside.  The  room  was  small,  but 
cool  and  pleasant,  and  soon  a  bountiful  repast  of  coffee,  eggs,  bread, 
and  excellent  wine  was  spread. 

Having  eaten,  I  took  advantage  of  the  declining  hour  of  day  to 
roam  through  the  Jewish  quarter  of  Safed,  in  which  ray  lot  for  the 
night  had  been  cast  Truly  a  romantic  spot  is  Safed!  It  occupies 
the  northern  extremity  of  a  steep  ridge,  having  deep  valleys  on  the 
east  and  west.  My  quarters  were  just  below  the  ruined  castle  at  the 
northern  part  of  the  city.  So  wearied  was  I  with  the  days'  peregri- 
nation, that  I  avoided  the  steep  climb  necessary  to  reach  them.  A 
little  outside  the  town  on  -the  north,  the  view  is  truly  magnificent. 
Olive-orchards,  vineyards,  and  innumerable  fig-trees  everywhere 
clothe  the  slopes  of  the  mountains  with  verdure,  and  suggest 
abounding  promises  of  oil  and  wine.  Villages  named  Ain  Zeitoun, 
Kadyta,  Saccas,  and  Marona,  lie  off  to  the  westward.  The  situation 
is  singularly  beautiful.  The  eye  lingers  over  it.  The  noble  moun- 
tain of  Naphtali,  behind  which  the  sun  is  hidden,  is  a  mass  of  foli- 
age. The  country  people  can  be  seen  through  the  whole  length  of 
the  intervening  valley,  returning  home  from  their  day's  labors.  Off 
to  the  southward  may  be  traced  my  five-hours  ascent  from  the  sea. 
How  solemn,  calm,  and  silent  seems  that  sheet  of  water  now,  and  so 
near  it  scarcely  looks  two  miles  distant  1  The  three  ridges  that  I 
have  come  over  this  afternoon  seem  only  so  many  furrows  in  a  plowed 
field.  That  noblest  of  summits,  Mount  Hermon,  never  shows  so  well 
to  me  as  at  this  hour.  The  last  rays  of  the  sun  glancing  up  from 
the  Mediterranean  Sea  are  reflected  dazzlingly  back  from  the  huge 
banks  of  snow  which  tell  unmistakably  of  his  great  elevation,  and 
so  disappear.  It  is  long  before  I  can  withdraw  my  eyes  from  his 
hoary  crown. 

Returning  slowly  through  the  filthy  lanes  of  Safed,  the  sound  of 


JEWISH    WORSHIP.  529 

chanting  and  the  appearance  of  a  public  gathering  draw  me  into  an 
apartment,  where  I  am  deeply  interested  to  see  the  Jews  at  their 
evening  devotions.  The  room  is  neat  and  clean,  and  lighted  with 
lamps  of  olive-oil.  Upon  a  shelf  are  several  folio  volumes,  doubtless 
copies  of  the  Talmud  in  Hebrew.  Several  venerable-looking  men 
came  promptly  forward  to  welcome  me  with  the  right  hand  of  fellow- 
ship and  invite  me  to  a  seat.  These  are  Polish  Jews,  who  wear  the  fur 
cap,  etc.,  that  I  have  seen  among  the  Ashkenazim  at  Jerusalem  and 
Tiberias,  as  badges  of  the  sect.  Many  of  the  worshippers  had  long 
white  beards  and  flowing  hair  of  the  same  color.  In  their  devo- 
tions they  are  very  earnest  and  vehement.  They  read  with  all  their 
might.  Some  clap  their  hands.  Some  clasp  both  hands  together, 
and  use  them  as  the  "  mourning  women"  do  at  their  funerals,  while 
frequent  cries  of  Ali-min,  Ah-miu,  form  the  so  mote  it  be  of  the 
responses.  Leaving  this  place  of  worship,  I  enter  another,  in  which 
the  exercises  are  of  the  same  character,  and  where  my  welcome 
by  the  elders  is  of  the  same  sort.  Here  I  remarked  that  ail  the 
worshippers,  upon  entering,  hold  their  hands  under  the  spout  of  a 
water-cooler,  from  which  a  few  drops  trickle  upon  them.  This  formed 
the  ceremonial  ablution  previous  to  the  service. 

I  was  not  so  unfavorably  struck  with  all  this,  however,  as  Sandys, 
*vho  observed  it  nearly  300  years  ago.  He  says  "  their  fanatical  ges- 
tures exceed  all  barbarism,  continuously  waving  their  bodies,  and 
often  jumping  upright.  They  esteem  action  and  zeal  marks  of  spirit- 
ual elevation." 

Early  the  next  morning  I  said  salaam  to  my  host,  and  struck  again 
northward,  resolved  to  reach  Tibnin.  This  would  be  an  easy  march 
for  the  day,  only  one  of  my  horses  had  given  out  and  had  to  be 
driven.  The  first  half-hour  was  down  into  the  deep  valley  to  the 
northwest,  past  the  finest  vineyards  and  orchards  of  Syria. 

Rising  again,  I  observed  heaps  of  black  stone  and  lava  surrounding 
an  oval  basin,  now  full  of  water,  that  is  reckoned  as  the  crater  of  an 
extinct  volcano.  Its  depth  is  about  40  feet;  length  from  north  to 
south,  about  400  feet ;  breadth,  120.  It  is  called  Birket-el-Jish.  The 
village  of  the  same  name  was  just  before  me.  This  village  was 
totally  destroyed  by  the  earthquake  of  January  1,  1837,  at  the  time 
Safed,  Tiberias,  and  other  Galilean  towns  were  so  sorely  shattered.  The 
Christians  were  at  their  prayers  when  the  church  fell  in  upon  them 
and  crushed  them  to  death,  to  the  number  of  one  hundred  and  thirty 

Passin^  El-Jish,  I  went  down  a  long  valley  finely  cultivated.  Go- 

34 


530  CUBIOU8   SARCOPHAGUS. 

ing  out  of  this,  I  bore  a  little  too  much  to  the  westward,  and  took 
my  noonday  luncheon  at  a  village  called  Kefr  Birini,  which  has  ruins 
of  some  fine  old  structures.  Over  what  was  formerl)  a  gateway  is  a 
long  Hebrew  inscription,  of  which  the  first  word  implies  peace.  But 
the  principal  ruin  is  the  front  of  a  large  building  with  two  rows  of 
limestone  columns  before  it,  once  belonging  to  a  portico.  I  hope 
some  day  to  see  good  photographs  of  these. 

Here,  say  the  old  writers,  the  Jews  of  Safed  used  to  make  thsir 
annual  pilgrimage  at  the  festival  of  Queen  Esther  (Purim),  and  here 
they  did  "  eat,  drink,  and  rejoice,"  as  I  saw  them  doing  yesterday,  a 
few  miles  farther  south. 

Passing  on  a  few  miles  northward,  I  was  interested  to  see  by  the 
roadside  a  very  large  sarcophagus,  or  stone  coffin.  The  lid  was  very 
heavy,  as  much  as  two  feet  thick,  stout,  and  cut  off  each  way  so  as  to 
look  like  the  roof  of  a  house.  It  is  now  thrown  aside;  the  coffin  it- 
self has  been  dug  out,  and  turned  partly  over,  as  if  to  search  for 
treasures  beneath  it  This  tomb  almost  exactly  resembles  one  I  have 
seen  pictured  near  Delphi,  Greece.  Dr.  Robinson  thinks,  from  the 
fragments  of  column  near  by,  that  this  might  once  have  formed  a 
solitary  tomb  upon  a  heavy  pedestal,  like  that  of  King  Hiram  (Kebr 
Hairan)  near  Tyre.  It  did  not  strike  me  in  that  way,  however. 
Observing  some  very  large  rocks  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  westward, 
I  went  among  them  in  pursuit  of  adventures,  and  was  rewarded  by 
discovering  the  most  remarkable  receptacle  for  the  dead  that  my 
whole  explorations  had  developed.  In  preparing  it,  the  stonecutters  had 
simply  smoothed  off  the  top  of  a  knobbed  fragment  of  stone,  without 
removing  it  from  its  place,  and  thus  chiselled  a  coffin  in  the  rock,  leav- 
ing the  sides  ragged  as  nature  had  made  them.  The  lid  was  gone.. 

Passing  on,  I  reached  Bint  Jebail  about  noon,  and  remained  there 
several  hours.  It  was,  by  good  chance,  the  day  of  the  weekly  fair 
(Thursday),  and  I  was  thus  afforded  an  opportunity  of  seeing  the 
commercial  transactions  of  these  people  right  at  home.  The  busi- 
ness done  was  decidedly  of  a  peddling  character — one  merchant 
having  a  few  pounds  of  figs,  another  some  candy,  another  a  handful 
of  notions,  the  next  a  little  tobacco,  while  one  venerable  old  dame 
presented  the  commercial  attractions  of  three  small  squashes  as  her 
stock  in  trade.  Yet  there  were  a  few  Syrian  traders  with  cotton  and 
silk  goods,  whose  value  must  have  been  several  hundred  dollars  each. 
All  were  extremely  polite,  and  I  purchased  soap  of  one,  candy  of 
another,  figs  of  a  third,  and  so  on,  until  I  had  invested  quite  a  hand- 


531 

ful  of  the  greasy  and  corrupted  coins  current  in  Bint  Jebail.  As  one 
of  the^hoises  had  cast  his  shoe,  it  was  a  treat  to  witness  the  primitive 
operations  of  our  blacksmith— how  he  pared  the  hoof  with  a  jack- 
knife  very  old  and  very  dull— how  he  put  just  four  nails  and  no 
more  into  the  foot,  and  clinched  them  by  holding  the  foot  down  upon 
a  rock  and  pounding  well  at  the  points.  The  shoe  of  this  coun- 
try is  uniformly  made  to  cover  the  whole  foot.  From  the  loose  man- 
ner of  the  Vulcan  of  Bint  Jebail,  I  should  think  he  was  preparing 
work  for  the  blacksmiths  on  ahead  of  me. 

Observing  a  noble  fig-tree  on  a  hill  north  of  the  town,  I  directed 
my  party  there,  and  we  spent  some  cool  and  refreshing  hours  until 
the  sun  warned  us  off  toward  Tibnin.  The  country,  like  that  for 
the  last  few  hours,  is  undulating,  cultivated,  wooded,  and  beautiful, 
a  succession  of  hill  and  dale,  with  more  distant  hills  still  higher  and 
more  thickly  wooded.  Presently  we  came  into  a  region  of  great 
beauty,  with  the  Castle  of  Tibnin  upon  an  isolated  hill  in  the  midst 
As  we  are  slowly  approaching  it,  charmed  with  these  enchanting 
landscapes,  each  of  which  is  more  beautiful  than  the  last,  a  few  his- 
torical notes  from  Robinson,  that  prince  of  notists,  will  be  useful 
The  Castle  of  Tibnin  was  built  by  St.  Omer,  Lord  of  Tiberias,  A.D. 
1107,  only  eight  years  after  the  capture  of  Jerusalem  by  the  Crusa- 
ders, and  seventeen  years  before  Tyre  itself  came  into  their  posses- 
sion. St.  Omer  selected  it  as  a  kind  of  security  against  Saracenic 
incursion  from  the  coast,  choosing  a  secure  hill  in  a  most  fruitful 
country,  and  named  it  Toron,  but  the  natives  called  it  Tibniu.  Im- 
mediately after  the  battle  of  Hattin  (July  5,  1187),  Saladin  captured 
it  by  assault.  It  came  afterward  into  the  possession  of  the  Crusa- 
ders, and  in  1286  was  again  captured  by  the  Saracens,  under  Sattan 
Bibars.  The  still  more  celebrated  and  romantic  Castle  of  Belfort  lies 
a  few  miles  northeast  of  Tibnin,  but  this  I  did  not  visit. 

Avoiding  the  castle,  whose  Pasha  would  readily  have  acknowledged 
my  credentials  had  I  called  upon  him,  I  engaged  lodgings  in  one  of 
the  houses  of  the  village  below,  a  cleanly  and  respectable  apartment 
compared  with  the  general  range  of  native  houses.  During  the 
night  the  soldiers  came  down  from  the  castle,  and  conscripted  the 
head  of  the  family  next  door.  When  I  arose  I  was  surprised  to  find 
a  group  of  women  around  my  court-yard.  They  had  heard  that  I 
was  in  favor  with  the  Pasha-General,  and  hoped  I  would  use  my  in- 
auence  to  have  the  man  released.  It  was  certainly  a  painful  sight, 
the  tears  of  the  women,  the  wife  thus  suddenly  deprived  of  her  pro- 


532  VALLEY   OF   THE   WOLF. 

tector  wailing  and  wringing  her  bauds.  But  all  that  I  could  do  was 
to  advise  them  to  make  up  a  sum  of  money  and  hire  the  Cadi  to  go 
up  to  the  castle  and  buy  off  their  neighbor.  It  was  probably  nothing, 
after  all,  but  an  attempt  of  the  soldiers  (who  are  extremely  tyran- 
nical to  the  natives)  to  extort  money  from  the  villagers. 

The  next  day's  ride  to  Tyre  was,  like  the  last,  full  of  interest.  The 
disabled  horse  was  left  behind,  his  owner,  Hassan,  remaining  with  him, 
and  so  depriving  me  of  the  only  one  of  my  three  servants  who  knew 
a  word  of  English.  But  as  I  was  to  stay  in  the  family  at  Tyre 
where  I  had  previously  spent  several  days,  this  was  of  less  conse- 
quence. A  short  distance  west  of  Tibnm  and  I  gained  a  splendid 
view  of  the  Mediterranean  Sea,  which  I  had  last  looked  upon  at  Naz- 
areth. Tyre  was  the  only  town  in  sight  along  the  coast.  Then 
a  long  descent  took  me  into  the  most  gloomy  and  romantic  valley  I 
had  ever  seen.  Its  name,  Valley  of  the  Wolf  ( Wady  Deeb),  is  quite 
m  keeping  with  its  appearance.  At  the  place  where  I  left  it  the  hills 
must  be  quite  600  feet  in  height,  and  so  nearly  perpendicular  that 
no  four-footed  beast  save  goat  or  gazelle,  or  Lebanon  horse,  would 
venture  the  ascent  Writers  say  that  wolves  and  bears  abound  in 
Wady  Deeb,  and  there  is  a  pond,  near  which  we  passed,  at  which  the 
mountain  leopards  slake  their  thirst  at  night..  But  I  will  say  for 
them,  in  the  language  of  the  poet — 

"The  very  leopards  of  the  dells 
Looked  down  and  let  me  pass." 

This  valley  is  a  long,  narrow,  winding,  magnificent  chasm,  scooped 
out  by  the  creative  energy  on  a  scale  of  savage  and  magnificent 
grandeur.  I  cannot  leave  this  romantic  valley  without  repeating 
that  nothing  can  exceed  its  w:ld  appearance ;  yet  many  kinds  of 
trees  and  shrubs  adorn  it — the  beech-tree  and  velonea  oak,  the  wild 
rose,  the  broom,  etc. ;  while  the  white  flowers  of  woodbine  and  cle- 
matis load  the  air  with  fragrance.  The  pleasant  memories  of  this 
deep  dale  will  haunt  me  through  life. 

About  noon  I  reached  the  fountain  at  Kanah,  a  Christian  village 
about  seven  miles  east  of  Tyre.  Some  time  before,  when  I  made  my 
first  visit  to  Tyre,  I  had  contributed  something,  by  special  request,  to 
the  purchase  of  a  bell  for  the  Christian  church  here,  and  felt,  there- 
fore, that  I  had  an  interest  in  Kanah.  But  whatever  it  was,  I  took 
it  out  in  spending  a  noontide  hour  at  the  fountain,  watching  the 
women  us  they  came  after  the  household  supply  of  water,  and  ob- 


KABR   HAIRAN.  533 

serving  thi  ancient  and  primitive  method  of  watering  the  flocks  by 
the  shepherds  and  shepherd  boys.  Every  flock  of  sheep  and  goatg 
as  it  came  down  from  the  hills  followed  its  leader,  confirming  a  host 
of  Scriptural  readings,  many  of  them  of  the  most  tender  and  affect- 
ing  nature.  The  water-troughs,  as  usual,  were  stone  coflins  (sar- 
cophagi), pilfered,  doubtless,  long  ago,  from  the  tombs  in  the  rocky 
sides  of  these  old  hills,  and  made  to  do  duty  to  the  living  generations 
who  will  soon  be  as  the  great  men  who  occupied  these  receptacles- 
dust  and  ashes.  The  coffee  made  from  the  sweet  fountain  of  Kanah, 
and  heated  by  the  crackling  thorns  that  lay  around,  was  all  the 
sweeter,  as  I  knew  that  these  people,  who  watched  my  movements 
with  snch  gentleness  and  respect,  were  believers  in  the  Son  of  God. 

Half  an  hour  more  toward  the  west  (through  a  slight  shower,  the 
first  I  had  encountered  since  March)  brought  me  to  Hiram's  Tomb 
(Kabr  Hairan),  which  has  been  described  in  a  former  article.  I 
took  the  present  occasion  to  verify  and  correct  my  measurement  of 
this  remarkable  monument,  said  by  the  most  experienced  of  all 
American  travellers  to  be  the  most  extraordinary  monument  of  an- 
tiquity yet  remaining  in  the  Holy  Land,  an  immense  sarcophagus  of 
stone,  resting  upon  a  lofty  pedestal  of  large  hewn  stones,  a  conspic- 
uous ancient  tomb,  bearing  among  the  common  people  the  name  of 
Kabr  Hairan,  or  Sepulchre  of  Hiram.  A  traveller  from  Scotland 
(Bonar,  1839)  says  that  in  two  hours  from  Tyre,  his  attention  was 
attracted  by  a  singular  monument  or  tomb,  resting  upon  immense 
hewn  stones.  The  upper  stone  was  very  large,  and  it  was  not  easy 
for  him  to  see  how  it  had  been  lifted  on  to  its  fellowa  A  better  idea 
of  the  magnitude  of  Hiram's  Tomb  will  be  gained  by  estimating 
that  the  sarcophagus  weighs  fifty  tons,  calculating  the  stone  at  160 
pounds  to  the  cubic  foot.  The  lid,  six  feet  thick,  is  of  nearly  tho 
same  weight,  and  fits  with  the  cavity  in  the  top  of  the  sarcophagus 
(where  the  body  was  deposited)  by  a  shoulder  about  four  inches 
deep.  I  crowded,  with  difficulty,  into  the  coffin,  by  the  opening  left 
by  those  who  deposited  it  perhaps  2,900  years  ago,  and,  stretching 
myself  at  full  length  upon  the  spot  where  the  corpse  had  once  lain, 
found  that  I  could  touch  one  extremity  of  the  cavity  with  my  toe*, 
while  my  head  pressed  against  the  other. 

Having  finished  up  with  care  and  accuracy  all  the  measurements, 
T  went  on  to  Ras-el-Ain  (or  head  of  the  fountain),  the  remarkable 
water-works  that  once  supplied  all  Tyre  with  the  necessary  fluid. 
The  place  is  about  three  miles  from  the  oity,  and  close  to  the  sea, 


534  NOTES    FROM    MY    D1AEY. 

into  which  the  vast  supplies  are  now  emptied,  with  but  little  other 
practical  use  save  the  turning  of  one  or  two  shackling  grist-mills. 
These  are  the  most  interesting  water-works  in  Syria.  There  must 
originally  have  been  some  very  strong  springs  bubbling  out  here,  with 
great  walls,  immensely  thick,  built  around  these  springs  as  high  as  the 
water  would  rise,  viz.,  about  twenty  feet,  and  thus  the  supply  could 
be  passed  along  aqueducts  to  a  great  distance.  There  are  substan- 
tial steps  made  to  ascend  these  walls,  and  a  broad  walk  emborders 
the  basins.  A  piece  of  the  ancient  aqueduct,  consisting  of  three 
arches,  is  seen  about  two  miles  from  Ras-el-Ain,  and  a  good  deal  of 
the  work  that  lay  near  the  ground.  So  much  lime  exists  in  this 
water  that  its  drippings  have  produced  masses  of  stone  of  the  nature 
of  stalactites.  The  whole  structure  is  grand  and  imposing,  and  it  is 
no  wonder  that  the  Mohammedans,  who  attribute  so  much  to  the 
wisdom  and  generosity  of  King  Solomon,  affirm  that  these  noble 
fountains  were  erected  at  his  expense,  and  presented  by  him  to  his 
friend  and  companion,  King  Hiram,  after  the  latter  had,  through 
his  skilled  craftsmen,  completed  the  Temple  at  Jerusalem.  Other 
fountains  and  reservoirs  lie  along  this  plain,  but  none  comparable, 
either  in  their  natural  or  artificial  features,  to  these  at  Ras-el-Ain. 

About  six  o'clock  I  turned  down  to  the  beach  and  followed  it  on  to 
Tyre.  Shells,  the  spines  of  cuttle-fish,  live  sand-crabs  in  abundance, 
and  other  objects  living  and  dead,  added  variety  to  the  way,  and  it 
was  in  quite  a  refreshed  condition  that  I  entered  the  decayed  gate  of 
Tyre  and  claimed  lodging  at  the  hands  of  my  old  host,  whose  el 
fuddel  (welcome)  it  was  pleasant  once  more  to  hear. 

The  amount  of  notes  taken  upon  these  two  days'  journey,  to  be  in 
corporated  into  other  chapters,  will  prove  how  industriously  my  time 
was  spent  I  work  in  a  few  here,  which,  "being  neither  oblong  nor 
square,"  do  not  so  readily  fit  elsewhere.  At  the  place  where  the  Jor- 
dan and  sea  meet,  the  river  flowing  clear,  cool,  swift,  and  shaded 
with  oleanders,  I  recalled  the  Apostle  Peter,  born  near  this  place, 
who,  though  slower  than  John  to  recognize,  was  the  first  to  hasten 
to  the  Master.  The  character  of  Simon  Peter  is  one  that  always  pos- 
sessed a  strange  fascination  for  me.  If  I  have  sinned  as  Peter,  may 
my  pardon  be  as  speedy,  tender,  and  sure.  In  referring  to  the  beau- 
ful  valley  near  the  northwest  corner  of  the  sea,  which  Josephua 
praises  so  highly,  I  must  use  the  words  of  an  old  writer,  who  affirms 
that  it  is  the  most  pregnant  and  pleasant  valley  that  ever  eye  beheld, 
full  of  flowerv  "  beauties." 


NOTES  FROM   MY   DIABT.  535 

In  relation  to  the  celebrated  Christ's  Thorn,  very  abundant  here, 
I  write :  The  various  names  are  Christ's  Thorn,  and  by  the  Greeks, 
Judas'  Thorn,  or  Judenborn.  Paliurus  aculeatus  is  one  of  the  botan- 
ical terms.  The  same  species,  it  is  said,  is  used  in  Italy  for  fences, 
its  sharp  spines  and  pliant  branches  adapting  it  for  that.  The  fruit 
has  a  singular  contrivance,  being  flat  and  thin,  attached  by  the  middle 
to  the  footstalk,  the  middle  raised  like  the  crown  of  a  hat,  while  the 
expansion  resembles  the  brim.  The  seeds  are  used  in  the  East  medi- 
cinally. It  is  said  the  plant  is  common  in  English  shrubberies,  but 
the  fruit  does  not  ripen  there.  A  years'  study  of  nature  around  the 
delightful  sheet  of  water  called  the  Sea  of  Galilee  would  afford  a 
rare  volume.  The  members  of  the  Scotch  rite  could  study  their 
favorite  emblem,  the  pelican,  who  displays  all  his  wise  oddities 
here.  Catching  a  fish  crosswise,  he  adjusts  it  for  swallowing  by  toss- 
ing it  in  the  air,  and  catching  it  as  it  comes  head  downward  with 
the  expertness  of  a  juggler.  Nine  times  out  of  ten  the  finny  fellow 
gets  into  the  bird's  gullet;  the  tenth  one  drops  back  into  the  water 
to  relate  his  terrific  experience  to  the  rest.  When  the  fowl's  pouch 
is  loaded  he  returns  to  his  nest,  often  twenty-five  or  thirty  miles  from 
the  fishing-grounds,  and  disgorges  the  finny  spoil  to  his  young.  I 
notice  in  watching  a  flock  of  pelicans,  that  when  one  yawns,  all 
yawn.  Is  this  analogous  to  the  Scotch  rite  practice  ?  I  have  heard 
it  said  so ! 

It  would  take  a  volume  to  embody  my  recollections  of  Capernaum, 
and  the  parallels  presented  by  the  place.  Sitting  upon  these  desolate 
rocks,  every  one  of  which  bears  marks  of  the  mason's  chisel,  one  has 
but  to  close  his  eyes  and  recall  the  spirit  of  humanity  that  once  made 
this  place  a  home  of  men.  Children,  fountains,  schools,  gardens, 
shady  bowers,  synagogues,  places  of  custom,  hospitals,  singing  birds 
—where  are  they  now  ?  Where  stood  the  rich  city,  the  port  of  entry 
and  customs  for  all  Galilee,  is  now  utter  desolation ;  "  gladness  is 
taken  away,  and  joy  out  of  the  pleasant  fields ;  in  the  vineyard  there 
is  no  singing,  neither  shouting ;  the  treaders  tread  out  no  wine  in 
the  press,  their  vintage  shouting  has  ceased"  (Isaiah  xvi.  10).  It  is 
well  styled  by  another  "a  waste  of  ruins,  dwellings, palaces,  temples, 
and  triumphal  arches,  all  piled  in  indiscriminate  confusion."  With 
Solomon's  signet  as  an  emblem  to  settle  the  question  of  proprietor- 
ship, and  the  Jewish  sacred  candlestick  to  give  the  hope  of  return- 
ing light,  these  ruins  are  of  the  profoundest  interest  to  a  Mason— a 
heap  of  pillars,  cornices,  entablatures,  jambs,  altars,  mullions,  sculp- 


636  EXPLOIT   OF   HEROD. 

tured  tablets,  and  other  things  that  exhaust  my  range  of  architect- 
ural nomenclature.  Here,  where  was  the  ruin  of  a  great  city,  nought 
remains  but  heaviness  and  sorrow  (Isaiah  xxix.  2) ;  the  line  of  confu- 
sion has  been  stretched  out  upon  it,  the  stones  of  emptiness  have 
been  heaped  upon  it  (xxxiv.  11).  The  piaterial  is  bastard  marble, 
procured,  probably,  from  the  quarry  near  Kedesh,  twenty  miles  north- 
west. 

Galilee  is  a  sea  tempestuous  and  unfaithful,  at  an  instant  incensed 
with  sudden  gusts ;  and  there  is 

"No  one  now 
Hath  power  to  walk  these  waters  like  our  Lord." 

As  I  went  out  of  Tiberias, 

"Under  the  opening  eyelids  of  the  morn," 

I  was  accompanied  by  the  shepherds  of  the  place,  who,  like  all  their 
craft  in  this  vicinity,  lead  their  flocks  into  the  houses  of  the  town, 
where  they  can  be  under  their  watch-care  all  night.  In  this  part  of 
the  country  I  do  not  see  them 

"  Battening  their  flocks  with  the  fresh  dews  of  night ;  " 
nor  do  they  exemplify  the  words  which  Milton  sang : 

"  The  shepherds  on  the  lawn, 
Or  ere  the  point  of  dawn, 

Sat  simply  chatting  in  a  rustic  row  ; 
Perhaps  their  loves,  or  else  their  sheep, 
"Were  all  that  did  their  silly  thoughts  so  busy  keep." 

At  the  mouth  of  Wady  Hammam  (Pigeon  Kavine),  I  recalled  the 
celebrated  exploit  of  Herod,  who  exterminated  the  band  of  robbers 
that  infested  these  caves,  by  letting  down  his  soldiers  in  strong  boxes 
hung  by  chains.  The  plan  was  imitated,  with  equal  success,  by  Si- 
gurd, the  Crusader,  A.D.  1109.  He  let  down  two  boats,  filled  with  his 
sailors,  from  the  top  of  a  precipice,  and  these  grappled  the  thieves  at 
their  caves'  doors,  and  destroyed  them  with  but  little  loss.  The 
ruins  in  this  neighborhood  are  of  squared  stones,  of  hard,  black,  and 
spongy  basalt.  A  story  is  told  here  characteristic  of  Herod's  cruelty, 
as  manifested  in  the  slaughter  of  the  children  of  Bethlehem,  and  of 
his  own  wives  and  children.  In  putting  one  of  the  robbers  to  death, 
captured  in  these  caves,  he  tied  400  live  pigeons  to  his  body  to  break 
the  fall !  The  historian  fails  to  state  whether  the  fall  was  broken,  or 
only  the  robber.  But  they  have  no  end  of  traditions  here.  One  is 
that  Joshua  ordered  this  lake  opened  as  a  fishing-place  to  all  comers 


HISSING   FOR  THE   DESTROYEB8.  537 

No  Cape  Cod  exclusiveness  about  him !  It  always  was  a  sort  of  Lake 
Minnetouka  for  fish,  and  I  hope  the  time  will  come  when  fishing  of 
the  right  sort  will  be  practised  there.  It  is  really  insulting  to  see 
how  impudent  the  fish  have  become  for  want  of  masters.  The  peli- 
cans and  didappers  absolutely  have  it  all  to  themselves. 

Those  wise  creatures  of  music,  the  birds,  always  know  where  are 
the  best  quarters !  The  dove  of  Noah  returned  to  the  ark  for  shelter 
and  food,  and,  no  doubt,  gave  the  patriarch  a  solo  of  cooing,  soft  and 
gentle  as  the  one  I  hear  in  the  oleander.  The  little  Egyptian  fan- 
tail  (DrymcBca  gracilifi),  runs  up  the  sides  of  the  reeds,  as  described 
by  Prof.  Tristam,  with  its  loud,  clear  note,  and  long,  white-tipped 
tail.  Among  the  flowers  that  crowd  this  rich  meadow-land,  may  bo 
seen  a  large  bunch  of  aggregated  white  flowers,  like  wild  parsley, 
whose  name  I  cannot  give.  Thorns  and  thistles  abound  here  with  a 
profusion  and  vastness  wonderful  to  contemplate.  Thus  the  first 
curse  pronounced  upon  the  earth  for  the  sins  of  men,  that  of  "  thorns 
and  thistles"  (Genesis  iii.  18),  was  literally  applied  to  Christ  To 
Him,  it  might  be  said,  with  Isaiah  (v.  6),  "there  came  up  briers  and 
thorns."  Amongst  them  are  "the  rivers,  the  floods,  the  brooks  of 
honey  and  butter,"  of  which  the  Patriarch  Job,  who  lived  but  a  few 
miles  to  the  southeast,  wrote  (xx.  19). 

Thoughtfully  climbing  the  slopes  into  the  purer  air  of  the  hills, 
my  eyes  can  scarcely  withdraw  themselves  from  Hermon  soaring  on 
my  right  hand.  The  expression  in  Isaiah  v.  26  occurs  to  me  with 
added  meaning.  The  Great  Illumer  describes  Jehovah  seated  yonder 
on  that  lookout,  from  which  all  Palestine  is  clearly  spread  before 
the  eye,  and  viewing  the  sensuality  and  falsehood  of  the  people.  He 
had  named  his  Chosen,  He  "  hisses"  for  the  destroying  nations  to 
come,  as  a  man  hisses  or  calls  in  a  sibilant  breath  to  his  flocks;  He 
"hisses"  for  the  Assyrian  1,000  miles  eastward ;  and  for  the  Egyp- 
tian 500  miles  southwestward ;  and  for  the  Greek  2,500  miles  north- 
westward. How  sublime  the  figure !  Turn,  0  reader,  and  read  it 
These  instruments  of  God's  wrath  were  but  too  ready  for  the  spoil. 
Maher-shalal-hashbaz  was  their  watchword.  They  came  with  speed 
swiftly,  their  girdles  bound  up,  their  shoe-latchets  strongly  tied,  as 
the  prophet  predicted.  Their  bows  were  bent,  their  arrows  sharp, 
they  roared  like  lions,  yelling  to  do  the  irresistible  will  of  Jehovah. 
Then  Capernaum  yonder  felt  the  woe;  then  Shechem;  then  Bethel; 
then  Jerusalem.  The  Assyrian,  "the  rod  of  His  anger,  the  staff 
indignation  in  His  hand,"  swept  over  all,  absorbing  all,  consuming  all. 


538  CALIFORNIA, 

The  noble  Jove-bird,  the  eagle,  sailing  over  the  high  mountain- 
passes,  shared  with  Hermon  my  admiration.  The  eagle  and  the 
mountain — how  appropriate  the  conjunction !  I  thought  so  one  day, 
a  few  weeks  since,  when,  reclining  under  a  vast  cedar  on  Lebanon,  I 
saw  the  regal  fowl  soaring  far  in  the  blue  heavens  above  me. 

The  view  northeastward,  as  I  mounted  the  hills,  embraced  the 
country  around  Lake  Huleh,  of  which  Dr.  Thomson  says  the  lake  is 
alive  with  fish,  the  trees  with  birds,  the  flowers  with  bees.  In  that 
direction  the  mountains  rise  high,  broken  and  rugged.  The  towns 
give  evidences  in  their  materials  of  extreme  old  age.  A  Californian 
will  recognize  in  the  dry  and  dusty  appearance  of  this  country  a 
parallel  to  his  own  State.  The  early  explorers  there  thought  nothing 
could  grow  in  that  dry  country ;  but  California  proves  to  us  one  of 
the  most  productive  States  in  the  Union.  Directly  east  of  me,  and 
about  seven  miles  distant,  is  the  Jordan,  and  Jacob's  Bridge  is  in 
sight.  There  are  numerous  fords  between  the  place  where  the  stream 
enters  the  Sea  of  Galilee  and  Jacob's  Bridge.  Looking  back  from 
time  to  time,  the  sea  gets  apparently  no  farther  off,  only  a  little  lower 
down.  The  present  name  of  this  sea,  which  is  165  feet  deep  and  653 
feet  below  the  Mediterranean,  Galilee,  Lake  of  Tiberias,  Lake  Chin- 
neroth,  etc.,  is  Bahr  Tibereeah.  While  on  this  subject,  I  will  put  all 
the  bahrs  I  have  found  together : 

Dead  Sea  is  Bahr  Loot 

Galilee  «  «    Tibereeah. 

Lake  Meron        "  "    Hoolah. 

Mediterranean    "  "     (I  forget  the  rest). 

It  is  in  Lake  Huleh  that  the  best  reeds,  used  for  ordinary  writing 
purposes  in  this  country,  are  collected.  The  Latin  adage,  Currente 
calamo,  with  a  swift-running  reed,  is  therefore  sacred  to  this  spot. 
And  this  naturally  reminds  me  of  the  comforting  thought  expressed 
in  the  Arabic  proverb :  "  Paradise  is  for  him  who  rightly  uses  the 
pen  (reed),  as  well  as  for  him  who  died  under  the  stroke  of  the 
sword."  Probably  that  swaggering  soldier  yonder  would  dispute  the 
maxim;  but  personally  I  have  no  doubt  of  it,  and  my  fellow- writers 
on  Masonry  (Mackey,  Simons,  Macoy,  Wheeler.  Moore,  Ransom,  et 
id  genus  omne),  will  doubtless  agree  with  me. 

The  bulrush,  too,  attains  to  great  dimensions  here,  suggesting  the 
passage,  "  bowing  down  their  head  like  bulrushes  "  (Isaiah  Iviii.  5). 
Here  too  we  find  fragrant  specimens  of  the  pond-lily,  nowhere  more 
lelicious,  as  I  have  seen,  than  in  the  Minnesota  lakes.  This  is  not, 


LILIES   OF   HULEH.  539 

however,  the  lotus  of  history ;  the  correct  name  of  that  is  nelumbium, 
and  it  abounds  in  the  Mississippi  river- bottom.  It  resembles  a  wasp's 
nest,  as  was  noticed  long  ago  by  writers.  These  lilies  of  Huleh 
remind  me  of  the  old  painting  that  haunted  my  youthful  memory, 
a  head  of  Christ  surmounted  by  three  white  lilies ;  also,  of  a  line  in 
the  Battle-Hymn  of  the  Republic  to  th e  same  effect  The  natives  here 
prepare  a  cooling  drink  of  the  stem  of  the  yellow  water-lily  (Nuphar 
luteuni).  The  sweet-scented  and  magnificent  "white  pond-lily," 
which  I  never  saw  anywhere  so  well  represented  as  when  on  a  boat 
excursion  in  Minnesota,  in  the  summer  of  1871,  in  company  with 
Mr.  0.  E.  Dodge,  Jr.,  also  abounds  here,  as  I  have  said.  It  is  the 
Nymphcea  odorata;  while  the  Nile  lotus,  the  most  historical  of  all, 
is  the  Nymphcea  lotus.  All  these  lilies  are  common  to  the  Orient 
Water-fowl  abound  in  Lake  Huleh,  which,  in  this  sense,  is 

"  A  lake  where  water-fowl  of  many  tribes, 
Geese,  crane,  and  long-necked  swans,  disport  themselves." 

And  here,  to  make  the  circle  complete,  grows  the  papyrus,  of  which 
paper  was  so  long  made. 

In  the  depressions  of  the  hills,  the  country  is  extremely  fertile,  justi- 
fying the  account  of  a  traveller,  who  entered  a  goodly  forest  full  of  tall 
and  delightful  trees,  intermixed  with  fruitful  and  flowery  lawns.  Per- 
haps the  earth  aflbrdeth  not  the  like ;  it  cannot  be  more  pleasant 
— a  wooded,  fertile  succession  of  slopes  and  valleys,  watered  by  good 
streams,  having  internal  sources  of  riches  in  abundance.  But  pass- 
ing out  of  these  delightful  spots,  the  white,  parched  soil  dazzles  the 
eye  and  scorches  the  face  with  reflected  heat.  One  locality  was 
specially  impressive,  a  hill-chasm  rent  of  wrinkled,  water- worn  rocks. 
Mounting  still  higher,  I  am  almost  in  sight  of  the  three  affluents  of 
the  Jordan,  which  come  down  from  the  north  to  form  the  sacred 
river;  viz.,  the  Large  (Leddam),  the  Long  (Hasbuhny),  and  the 
Beautiful  (Baniasy).  The  old  story  perpetuated  in  editions  of  Jesper 
Harding's  Bibles,  of  "  two  rivers,  the  Jor  and  the  Dan,"  is  unmiti- 
gated nonsense,  the  conceit  of  some  commentator  who  never  saw  the 
river  or  the  country.  Occasionally  I  see  the  shining  face  of  Lake 
Huleh,  where  were  "  the  waters  of  Merom,"  the  scene  of  Joshua's 
mighty  battle  and  victory.  As  soon  as  I  became  able  to  recognize 
the  locality,  I  turned  to  Joshua  xi.,  and  perused  the  magnificent 
description.  What  an  exploit !  It  was  worthy  of  the  best  days  of 


540  THE    MEZUZA. 

Napoleon,  whose  battle-field  near  Mount  Tabor,  only  twenty  miles 
south  of  here,  I  had  inspected  two  days  before.  Other  thoughts  are 
suggested  by  Lake  Huleh.  It  affords  an  enormous  supply  of  leeches 
(bloodsuckers),  which  some  day,  like  the  salt  of  Jebel  TJsdum  and 
the  chemicals  of  Bahr  Loot,  may  prove  of  economic  value  to  the 
nation.  At  present,  Australia  chiefly  supplies  the  European  market 
with  leeches,  to  the  number  of  ten  millions  annually,  and  the  princi- 
pal use  of  bloodsuckers  here,  in  Palestine,  is  to  suggest  fruitful 
images  to  the  tax-collectors. 

In  the  house  of  my  Hebrew  host  I  observed,  as  I  had  in  Mr. 
Wiseman's  at  Tiberias,  a  small  package  of  parchment  nailed  to  the 
door-posts.  This  scroll,  which  by  unchangeable  law  must  be  written 
in  Hebrew,  is  termed  the  Mezitza.  In  other  cases  they  are  covered 
with  glass  and  fastened  to  the  door-jambs.  They  are  written  by  the 
rabbins,  and  signed  with  the  name  of  God.  These  are  never  printed, 
but  written  on  parchment,  prepared  expressly  for  the  purpose,  with 
ink  of  a  prescribed  composition,  not  with  a  quill,  but  reed.  One 
Jew  I  saw  here  struck  me  with  so  much  interest  that  I  apply  to 
him  the  description  of  another  writer,  slightly  altered :  "  A  grand  old 
Abrahamic  face,  with  bold  outline,  nose  curved  like  a  bird's  beak,  firm 
full  lips,  massive  jaw,  from  which,  like  floss-silk,  flowed  a  massy  beard 
even  down  to  his  chest;  a  man  of  full  height,  with  an  eye  like  an 
eagle's  undimmed  by  age,  possessed  of  evident  strength  and  will, 
quickness  of  intellect  and  pertinacity  of  purpose." 

This  place  was  one  of  the  centres  of  disturbance  in  the  dreadful 
earthquake  commencing  New- Year's  Day,  1837,  and  continuing  for 
several  weeks.  The  ancients  were  taught  by  Anaxagoras,  about  B.C. 
435,  that  these  phenomena  were  produced  by  subterranean  clouds 
bursting  forth  into  lightning.  One  of  the  most  terrible  earthquakes 
this  country  has  ever  experienced  was  A.D.  742,  when  more  than  500 
towns  were  destroyed,  and  the  loss  of  life  surpassed  all  calculation. 
In  1754,  half  the  city  of  Cana  was  overwhelmed,  and  40,000  people 
perished  there.  In  1759,  the  Holy  Land  was  again  shaken  to  its  centre, 
and  Baalbec  destroyed.  These  stone  houses,  having  no  braces,  tumble 
in  under  an  earthquake  like  broken  eggshells.  The  piles  of  stone  and 
earth  come  down  in  heaps,  with  no  resistance.  A  man  who  had  come 
to  see  the  governor,  was  mounted  on  a  fine  Arab  mare,  beautifully 
caparisoned ;  the  rider  was  Tearing  a  political  decoration. 

In  1833  there  were  three  Jewish  printing-presses  at  Safed.  Pur- 
chasing a  coin  of  a  Jew  here,  I  afterward  wrote  the  following  article, 
and  give  it  in  illustration  of  the  subject  before  me. 


NUMISMATICS.  541 

WHAT  AN   ANCIENT  COIN  TEACHES. 

This  coin  is  of  the  period  of  Alexander  Balas,  whose  reign  of  seven 
years  covers  the  period  of  B.C.  152-146,  or  2020  years  ago.  It  ia 
about  the  size  and  weight  of  an  American  twenty-five  cent  piece,  but 
handsomer  than  any  of  our  American  coins  are  made.  The  mint- 
marks  are  nearly  as  sharp  and  clear-cut  upon  it  as  on  the  day  of  its 
issue.  On  the  obverse  is  the  portrait  of  Alexander  Balas,  king  of  the 
country  in  which  I  find  his  coin.  He  sports  a  handsome  but  rather 
inexpressive  countenance,  indulges  in  short  whiskers,  and  ties  his 
hair,  which  is  bushy  and  abundant,  with  a  fillet  On  the  reverse  of 
the  coin  is  the  eagle,  appropriated,  I  believe,  by  all  the  Alexanders, 
successors  of  the  Great  Alexander,  or  of  his  lieutenants.  Its  head  ia 
turned  to  the  left.  The  inscription  is  Alexandrore  Basileus,  etc. 

And  now  for  the  lesson  taught  by  this  coin.  About  the  year  B.C. 
154,  Demetrius  Soter,  King  of  Syria,  found  his  claims  opposed  and 
his  throne  disputed  by  a  young  man  of  obscure  birth,  named  Balas, 
who  was  acknowledged  and  his  cause  espoused  by  the  powerful  King 
of  Egypt,  Ptolemy  Philometor,  who  even  gave  him  his  daughter 
Cleopatra  in  marriage.  The  Roman  Senate  likewise  favored  young 
Balas,  and  authorized  him  to  raise  forces  to  possess  himself  of  the 
kingdom.  He  therefore  assumed  the  name  of  Alexander  Balas,  as 
upon  the  coin  that  lies  before  me,  together  with  the  title  "  King  of 
Syria."  Jonathan,  governor  of  the  Jewish  nation,  also  espoused  his 
cause.  The  contending  monarchs  came  to  arms  twice  in  the  year 
B.C.  152,  the  latter  contest  resulting  in  the  death  of  Demetrius  and 
the  elevation  of  Balas. 

Alexander  Balas  had  manifested  considerable  ability  during  the 
short  war  for  the  succession,  but  no  sooner  was  he  firmly  settled  upon 
the  throne,  than  he  fell  into  the  vices  of  luxury  and  idleness.  This 
created  so  much  dissatisfaction,  that  in  B.C.  148,  a  son  of  the  deposed 
monarch,  named  Demetrius  Nicator,  excited  a  rebellion  against 
Alexander,  being  encouraged  in  it  by  Alexander's  own  father-in-law, 
Ptolemy  Philometor,  who  took  his  daughter  Cleopatra  away  from 
her  husband  and  gave  her  to  his  rival.  The  contest  was  short  Alex- 
ander  Balas  was  defeated,  and  fled  to  Arabia,  where  he  was  treacher- 
ously murdered  in  the  year  B.C.  146. 

Two  years  afterward,  the  son  of  Alexander  Balas  assumed 
title  of  Antiochus  VL,  and  recovered  the  kingdom  of  Syria  f 
Demetrius  Nicator,  which  he  held,  however,  for  only  a  few  months, 


642  STORY   OF  THE   COIN. 

when  he  too  was  murdered.  This  led  (by  processes  which  the  pres 
ent  article  does  not  require  me  to  record)  to  the  absolute  independ- 
ence of  the  Jewish  nation,  for  the  first  time  in  six  hundred  years. 
They  struck  coins  in  B.C.  143,  a  thing  they  had  never  done  before, 
and  made  an  epoch  of  that  year  from  which  to  compute  their  future 
chronology.  This  epoch  is  used  by  Josephus  and  the  author  of  the 
first  book  of  Maccabees. 

But  this  coin  of  mine  possesses  much  more  of  valuable  history 
than  this.  As  one  of  a  series  of  the  coins  of  Syrian  kings,  it  refers 
us  back  to  the  dynasties  that  successively  rose  and  fell,  from  the 
death  of  the  Great  Alexander,  B.C.  324,  to  the  period  of  Alexander 
Balas.  Unhappy  Palestine !  placed  between  Egypt  and  Syria,  she 
could  never  extricate  herself  from  the  wars  incessantly  waged  be- 
tween those  rival  powers.  As  Josephus  finely  observes,  "  She  resem- 
bled a  ship  tossed  by  a  hurricane,  and  buffeted  on  both  sides  by  the 
waves,  while  she  lay  in  the  midst  of  contending  seas."  Ptolemy. 
Lagns  assumed  the  throne  of  Egypt,  and  conquered  Palestine;  B.a 
315,  Antigonus  made  himself  king  of  Syria  and  the  East,  and  con- 
quered Palestine;  while,  in  B.C.  312,  the  Egyptian  king  reconquered 
Palestine,  and  Seleucus  Nicator  became  king  of  Syria.  Again 
Antigonus  became  the  conqueror,  and  placed  his  son  Demetrius 
Poliorcetes  upon  the  throne;  B.C.  301,  another  change  was  made, 
and  Palestine  again  returned  to  the  Egvptian  yoke,  under  Ptolemy 
Lagus;  and,  upon  his  death,  B.C.  283,  under  his  son  Ptolemy  Phila- 
delphus.  It  was  this  man  whose  enlightened  zeal  caused  the  trans- 
lation of  the  Hebrew  Scriptures  in  the  form  now  styled  the  Septua- 
gint.  Upon  his  death,  in  the  year  B.C.  247,  Ptolemy  Euergetes  assumed 
the  crown. 

He  was  murdered,  B.C.  222,  by  his  own  son,  who  came  to  the  throne 
as  Ptolemy  Philopator.  At  this  time  Palestine  and  the  most  of 
Syria  had  for  about  sixty  years  enjoyed  uninterrupted  tranquillity 
under  the  government  of  Egypt.  The  Eastern  kings,  Antiochus 
Soter,  Antiochus  Theos,  Seleucus  Callinicus,  Seleucus  Keraunos,  and 
Antiochus  the  Great,  made  their  reigns  more  or  less  troublesome  to 
the  Jewish  nation,  who  were  their  neighbors  on  the  south ;  but  upon 
the  whole  this  period  may  be  called  one  of  their  happiest 

Antiochus  the  Great  conquered  all  Syria  and  Palestine  from  the 
Egyptians,  B.C.  218,  but  lost  it  a  few  months  afterward,  when  it  re- 
verted to  Ptoleiny  Philopator,  who  died  B.C.  205,  leaving  his  crown 
to  his  sou,  Ptolemy  Epiphanes.  The  war  was  renewed  by  Antiochus 


FAIE  AT  BINT  JEBAIL.  548 

the  Great,  who  speedily  reconquered  Syria  and  Palestine.  Again 
he  lost  it,  B.C.  204,  and  again  recovered  it  B.C.  198 ;  B.C.  190,  he  came 
into  contact  with  the  Roman  power,  by  which  he  was  terribly  de- 
feated, and  two  years  afterward  was  murdered. 

Seleucus  Philopator,  his  oldest  son,  succeeded  to  the  throne,  but  was 
himself  murdered,  B.C.  176,  his  brother,  Antiochus  Epiphanes,  suc- 
ceeding him  to  the  throne ;  B.C.  171,  this  king  defeated  the  Egyp- 
tians at  Pelusium,  and  again  B.C.  170.  This  monarch  so  greatly  op- 
pressed the  Jewish  nation  that,  B.C.  167,  the  daily  sacrifices  ceased  in 
the  Temple,  and  the  city  of  Jerusalem  was  almost  deserted.  Never 
before  were  they  exposed  to  so  furious  a  persecution  as  by  Antiochus 
Epiphanes.  Then  arose  the  great  family  of  the  Maccabees,  in  the 
persons  of  Mattathias  and  his  five  sons,  who  organized  a  religious 
war,  which  was  heroically  maintained  for  twenty-six  years  against  the 
Syrians,  under  five  successive  kings,  viz.:  Antiochus  Epiphanes  (who 
died,  B.C.  164),  Antiochus  Eupator  (who  was  murdered,  B.C.  162) 
Demetrius  Soter  (who  was  killed  in  battle,  B.C.  152),  Alexander 
Balas,  whose  coin  lying  before  me  has  suggested  this  series  of  his- 
torical facts  (and  who  was  treacherously  murdered,  B.C.  146),  and 
Antiochus  Theos,  who  was  murdered,  B.C.  144. 

All  these  and  numerous  other  matters  of  history,  essential  to  the 
perfect  understanding  of  Biblical  history,  belong  to  the  study  of  the 
coins  of  the  Syrian  and  Egyptian  kings,  and  to  this  one  of  Alexan- 
der Balas,  as  a  member  of  the  series. 

My  stay  at  Bint-Jebail  afforded  me  an  uncommon  insight  into 
local  customs,  and  were  I  to  visit  the  Holy  Land  again  I  would  make  it 
a  point  to  visit  these  weekly  fairs  frequently,  as  the  best  places  to 
study  the  natives  when  unbent.  The  professional  Scribe  is  here  in 
all  his  glory;  an  unarmed  man,  for  his  pursuits  are  peaceful  ("the 
pen  mightier  than  the  sword,"  you  know  !),  an  immensely  large  tur- 
ban answering  almost  in  place  of  a  parasol,  long  robes,  a  large  brass 
inkhorn  by  his  side  bristling  with  reeds  from  Lake  Huleh,  a  few 
miles  yonder  in  the  northeast.  I  regret  that  I  did  not  give  one  of 
them  a  job.  The  beeswax  sold  in  this  bazaar  is  of  a  dirty  yellow 
color,  mixed  with  many  impurities ;  twenty  per  cent  of  it  would  have 
to  be  strained  out :  it  put  me  in  mind  of  the  maple-sugar  I  saw 
brought  intc  Detroit,  Michigan,  by  Indians,  in  1836,  nearly  one- 
fourth  of  it  filth.  I  enjoyed  my  laugh  at  the  local  jests,  so  far  as 
Hassan  could  interpret  them  to  my  feeble  understanding.  They  are 
well  characterized  by  the  poet  as  "  local  jests,"  thos« 


544  BIBLICAL  SUGGESTIONS. 

"  Mirthful  sayings,  children  of  the  place, 
That  have  no  meaning  half  a  league  away.** 

The  better  class  of  the  men  are  in  turbans  and  long  robes,  the  bet- 
ter class  of  the  women  in  figured  silks  and  head-dresses  of  golden- 
coins.  Passing  from  the  fair-grounds  to  a  nooning  under  the  tig- 
tree,  my  mind  was  aroused  into  uncommon  activity,  and  I  read  and 
wrote  abundantly.  Every  traveller  in  this  country  seeks  such  a 
noble  fig-tree  to  escape  what  Isaiah  (xlix.  10)  calls  sharab,  "the 
heat  and  sun"  so  oppressive  here.  I  found  it  wholesome  to  review 
various  Scriptural  expressions  while  reclining  here.  "  As  the  trees 
of  the  wood  are  moved  with  the  wind"  (Isaiah  vii.  2)  is  brought  to 
vivid  recollection  by  a  pleasant  whiff  that  moves  the  fig-leaves. 
"  Too  young  to  have  knowledge  to  say,  My  father,  aud  my  mother," 
(Isaiah  viii.  4),  is  suggested  by  a  poor  little  wailing  creature,  scarcely 
a  week  old,  whose  pale  and  feeble  mother  wins  a  little  backsheesh  from 
me,  encouraged  thereto  by  my  pitying  look  at  the  infant.  "  The  bur 
den  taken  away  from  off  the  shoulder,  and  the  yoke  from  off  the 
neck"  (Isaiah  x.  21),  occurs  through  the  circumstance  of  a  fellah 
bringing  a  yoke  of  oxen  into  the  fair  for  sale,  removing  their  yoke 
and  the  heavy  packs  with  which  he  had  loaded  them.  "Judging  the 
poor  with  righteousness,  reproving  with  equity  for  the  meek  of  the 
earth"  (Isaiah  xi.  4),  comes  from  observing  a  cadi  or  local  magis 
trate,  a  mild,  honest  fellow,  if  ever  I  saw  one,  walking  among  the 
people  and  summarily  settling  their  disputes.  And  this  suggests 
other  passages :  "  The  firstborn  of  the  poor  shall  feed,  and  the  needy 
shall  lie  down  in  safety"  (Isaiah  xiv.  30).  "As  a  ruinous  heap" 
(Isaiah  x  vii.  l)is  referable  to  the  hilltop  yonder,  where  was  once  a 
flourishing  town,  but  now  nothing  but  a  pile  of  ruins.  "A  cloud 
of  dust  in  the  heat  of  harvest"  (Isaiah  xviii.  4)  is  suggested  by  yon- 
der Hermon,  whose  snowy  crown  dominates  all  this  land,  and  will 
an  hour  after  sundown  overflow  all  these  hillsides  and  valleys  with 
his  cooling  dews.  But  I  might  go  this  way  all  day.  Repeating  the 
close  of  Habakkuk's  prayer  here,  suggests  that  this  combination  of 
the  fig,  olive,  and  vine,  being  the  meat  of  the  field,  the  fold,  and  the 
vineyard,  embraces  the  victualling  of  the  land.  The  celebrated  figs 
of  Chios  are  ripened,  according  to  travellers'  accounts,  by  hanging 
one  unsavory  fig  among  the  ripening  ones.  Out  of  the  decaying 
fruit  issue  worms  which,  entering  the  others,  hasten  maturity.  Thia 
is  a  story,  however,  as  a  conscientious  fig-eater,  I  prefer  not  to  be- 


THE   NAME   OP   HIBAM.  545 

lieve ;  and  I  turn  my  attention  therefore  to  the  green  or  dust-colored 
grasshopper,  that  has  found  a  bit  of  wasted  confectionery  among  the 
horses'  feet,  and  recalls  the  passage  in  Isaiah  xl.  22,  where  God  is 
represented  sitting  upon  the  circle  of  the  earth,  whose  inhabitants 
are  as  grasshoppers.  But  now  the  day  goeth  away,  the  shadows  of 
evening  are  stretched  out  (Jeremiah  vi.  4),  and  it  is  time  to  move  for- 
ward to  my  intended  place  of  rest.  My  last  thought  in  this  chapter 
shall  refer  to  him  whose  name  connects  in  such  close  associations 
the  seven  Masonic  localities  I  have  now  described,  viz. :  Hiram  Abif. 
Brother  Albert  Pike,  in  his  Morals  and  Dogmas  of  Masonry, 
defines  this  name  thus :  The  word  Khairum  or  Khurum  is  acompound 
one.  Gesenius  renders  khurum  by  the  word  noble  or  free-born; 
khur  meaning  white,  noble.  It  also  means  the  opening  of  a  window, 
the  socket  of  the  eye.  Khri  also  means  white  or  an  opening  ;  and 
khris,  the  orb  of  the  sun,  in  Job  viii.  13,  and  x.  7.  Krishna  is  the 
Hindu  sun-god.  Khur,  the  Parsee  word,  is  the  literal  name  of  the 
sun. 


PALESTINE  LILT. 

35 


MOHAMMED    HAbCHID, 
Pasha    General    of    Syria. 

In  correcting  the  plates  for  the  second  edition,  June  1,  1872  I 
ain  under  the  painful  necessity  of  announcing  the  death  of  our 
distinguished  Brother,  whose  portrait  is  given  above,  and  to 
whom  this  volume,  by  permission,  was  dedicated. 

His  courtesies  had  afforded  me  so  much  satisfaction  and  solid 
Advantage  while  travelling  through  his  Jurisdiction,  that  T  feel 
to  mourn  him  as  an  old  friend  and  benefactor. 

His  decease  occurred  about  March  1,  1872,  but  I  cannot 
secure  the  exact  date.  He  had  been  recalled  to  Constantinople 
a  short  time  before,  under  charges  of  maladministration,  that 
sword  of  Damocles'  under  which  every  Turkish  ruler  continually 
sits.  Being  in  ill  health,  and  foreseeing  his  early  death,  he  had 
united  with  one  of  the  strictest  sects  of  the  Dervishes,  and  died 
noon  after.  It  is  by  no  means  unlikely  that  his  taking-off  was 
hastened  by  the  poison  or  bow-string  of  the  gr  vnrnraent. 


ABD-EL-KADEK. 


CHAPTER  XXX. 

DAMASCUS. 

T  is  a  fact,  and  a  most  suggestive  one  to  the  reader  of  a  well- 
filled  book,  that  an  experienced  traveller  gets  impressions 
of  a  country  with  a  freshness  and  vividness  of  form  and 
color  unknown  to  an  inhabitant.  "What  is  but  common- 
place to  them  is  uncommon  to  him;  the  languor  of  habit 
lias  not  repressed  its  novelty  and  truth.  He  sees  with  unworn  feel- 
ings. Ill  Chapter  X.,  I  gave  a  minute  account  of  my  interesting  jour- 
ney from  Beyrout  to  Damascus.  Nearly  four  thousand  years  ago,  an 
old  man  named  Abram  (afterward  Abraham)  came  down  this  way,  ac- 
companied by  his  wife  and  nephew  (Genesis  xii).  They  had  large  posses- 
sions of  bondmen  and  cattle,  but  no  children.  His  steward,  or  general 
manager,  was  one  Eleazar,  of  this  city  of  Damascus,  which  then,  as 
now,  was  the  gem  of  the  East,  a  wealthy  and  beautiful  emporium. 
Doubtless  he  pitched  his  tents  outside  the  gates,  as  all  caravans  do, 
for  at  least  one  night,  and,  walking  out  alone  in  the  solitude  of  the 
night,  consulted  the  Divine  Guide  who  had  led  him  thus  far  upon 
his  future  course.  Upon  the  determination  of  that  night  rested  the 
future  history  of  the  Land  of  Canaan,  then  almost  totally  unoccupied 
by  human  beings.  Had  Abram  pursued  a  southern  or  western  course, 
instead  of  taking  the  way  of  the  Jordan  valley  south  westward,  the 
country  called  Palestine  might  never  have  been  named  in  sacred  writ 
How  much  easier  to  understand  these  things  looking  upon  the  very 
places  where  Scriptural  events  occurred!  Yonder  is  the  path  that 
Abram  took:  the  historical  consequences  were  that  the  Chosen  Race 
possessed  themselves  of  that  region  beyond  the  Jordan ;  returned  to 
it  again  and  again  for  1,500  years ;  made  of  it  the  most  renowned 
nation  on  earth ;  and,  scattered  as  they  are  in  every  division  of  the 
earth,  to  this  day  they  yet  look  for  one  more  triumphant  and 
permanent  occupancy  of  Palestine.  All  this  is  due  to  Abram's  choice 


A    CAVALIER.  54j^ 

that  night ;  and  to  the  same  fact  may  be  ascribed  the  comparatively 
insignificant  fact  of  my  coming  here  to  "  look  over  the  land"  granted 
to  Abram  and  his  seed.  More  than  that :  it  is  to  the  circumstance 
that  occurred  here,  near  this  gate  of  Damascus,  almost  4,000  years  ago, 
that  we  owe  the  country  of  Palestine  as  our  Masonic  country.  But 
for  that,  Joppa  and  Jerusalem,  and  Bethel  and  Bethlehem,  and  Suc- 
coth,  and  the  passage  of  the  Jordan,  had  had  no  names  in  Masonic 
tradition ;  Phoenicia  had  borne  no  relationship  to  our  rites ;  the  story 
of  the  Widow's  Son  of  Tyre  would  have  been  lost  to  us.  There 
might  have  existed  a  system  of  speculative  Masonry,  but  how  differ- 
ent from  the  sublime  institution  that  now  encircles  and  brightens  the 
world ! 

These  were  the  thoughts  with  which  I  entered  Damascus.  Having 
letters  to  his  Excellency  Mohammed  Raschid  Pasha,  the  Governor- 
General  of  Syria  and  Palestine,  I  secured  an  early  opportunity, 
through  Brother  E.  T.  Rogers,  H.  B.  M.'s  Consul  here,  of  an  intro- 
duction, and  found  him  indeed  an  affable  gentleman,  thirty-eight 
years  of  age,  a  Turkish  officer  of  fine  education  and  long  experience, 
and  possessing  a  high  appreciation  of  Free-Masonry,  into  which  he 
had  been  initiated  several  years  before,  while  living  in  Smyrna.  As 
I  came  in  on  the  stage,  I  met  his  Excellency  riding  in  the  suburbs 
with  his  staff,  and  was  struck  by  his  fine  horsemanship,  which  really 
is  worth  describing.  He  rode  a  horse  of  the  best  blood  of  Arabia, 
sitting  him  as  though  he  were  a  part  of  the  noble  animal,  and,  as 
we  passed,  bowed  with  a  nobility  and  dignity  of  manner  known  only 
in  the  East.  I  could  see  that  he  was  fair  and  fat  in  flesh,  like  the 
Hebrew  prophet  (Daniel  i.  15).  He  jerked  the  bit  of  his  horse  until 
he  was  mad  with  pain,  and  snorted,  reared  up,  and  bounded  into  the 
air,  endeavoring  to  throw  his  rider;  but  the  Vali  sat  him  firmly— 
surely  as  he  sits  in  the  chair  of  government  of  this  country,  recalling 
a  poetical  thought  of  the  days  when 

"  The  chieftains  of  Damas*  were  proud  to  see 
The  flashing  of  their  swords'  rich  marquetry." 

The  Pasha  wore  stirrups  so  short  as  to  bring  his  knees  on  the  level 
of  the  pommel  of  his  saddle.  This  is  the  invariable  custom  of 
the  East,  a  mode  of  wearing  the  stirrups  theoretically  preferable,  both 

*  The  name  here  is  never  pronounced  Damascus,  but  Z*w/w,  ir  Es-Shems. 


550  SHORT   STIRRUPS. 

to  man  and  horse,  to  our  own.  It  gives  greater  firmness  to  the  seat, 
and  causes  the  rider  to  depend  for  his  safety  on  the  clamp  of  the 
thighs  rather  than  the  balance  of  the  body.  As  his  heels  touch 
the  horse's  flanks,  he  can  use  his  spurs  rapidly  without  changing  the 
position  of  his  legs.  All  equestrian  nations  that  use  saddles  at  all, 
ride  with  short  stirrups — Arabs,  Turks,  Tartars,  Persians,  Magjars, 
Cossacks,  English  fox-hunters,  Circassians,  Egyptians.  The  Mame- 
lukes, acknowledged  to  be  most  excellent  horsemen,  had  the  stirrup 
so  high  as  to  form  a  letter  V  with  each  leg,  the  lower  part  being 
horizontal.  This  threw  the  muscles  of  the  leg  and  thigh  into  the 
greatest  possible  prominence,  developing  the  utmost  adhesive  power 
of  the  limb.  It  is  claimed  that  a  weak  man,  wearing  short  stirrups, 
can  draw  a  strong  man  from  the  saddle  who  rides  with  his  legs  ex- 
tended. 

In  my  call  upon  this  eminent  man  and  Mason,  he  listened  with 
marked  interest  to  a  narration  of  my  plans,  and  promised  me 
all  the  assistance  I  should  require.  At  that  time  he  was  chiefly 
absorbed  in  a  contemplated  movement  to  Palmyra  (Tadmor) ;  and  as 
I  was  extremely  anxious  to  visit  that  ancient  relic  of  King  Solomon's 
day,  he  placed  me  upon  his  staff,  and  tendered  me  the  advantages  of 
a  position  in  his  own  military  family.  This  was  more  than  I  could 
have  anticipated,  even  from  so  generous  a  man.  As  the  detachment 
was  to  embrace  some  three  thousand  men  of  all  arms,  he  assured  me 
of  whatever  help  I  needed  in  measuring  the  ruins  of  Tadmor  and 
excavating  the  tombs.  It  was  therefore  a  disappointment  of  no  light 
magnitude  that,  for  political  reasons,  the  expedition  was  afterward 
postponed  to  a  period  so  late  that  it  was  not  in  my  power  to  join  it. 
In  fact,  it  was  nearly  twelve  months  before  it  was  accomplished. 

Before  parting  with  this  excellent  brother,  he  presented  me  with  an 
official  paper  directed  to  all  Pashas,  Governors,  Sheiks,  etc.,  undei 
his  authority,  ordering  them  to  see  me  accommodated  with  lodgings 
for  myself  and  party,  wherever  I  went,  and  provided  with  guards  to 
pass  over  all  dangerous  places.  My  obligations  for  this  courtesy  are 
very  great.  The  following  is  a  translation  of  this  important  docu- 
ment, as  made  for  me  by  Brother  Nazif  Meshaka,  of  Damascus,  to 
whose  kindness  in  many  ways  I  was  then  and  have  been  since  greatly 
indebted : 

A  Buyuruldi  to  all  whom  it  may  concern :  To  the  officers  and 
chiefs  of  villages  within  the  Pashalic  of  Syria.  The  bearer  of  our 
Buyuruldi,  the  American  Emir,  General  Morris,  is  travelling  to  cer- 


MOHAMMED   BA8CH1D.  551 

tain  famous  places.  You,  both  small  and  great,  must  show  him  the 
greatest  respect,  and  designate  for  him  places  of  abode  for  himself 
and  servants  wherever  he  may  go,  and  supply  his  wants  at  just  prices. 
And  in  his  going  from  one  place  to  another,  furnish  him  ample  horse- 
men for  his  safety  on  the  way,  so  that  he  may  reach  the  localities  he 
desires  to  visit.  And  pay  him  honor  wherever  he  may  go.  And 
therefore  we  have  furnished  you  this  Buyuruldi,  that  you  may  act 
accordingly. 

Dated  16th  Zilhadjeh,  1284  (that  is,  March  26,  1868). 

From  a  sketch  of  this  distinguished  ruler,  written  after  my  return 
I  copy  these  extracts :  The  Pasha-General  of  Syria  and  Palestine 
resides  at  Damascus,  eighty  miles  east  of  Beyrout  I  made  haste  to 
pay  my  respects  to  him,  and  to  ask  for  his  powerful  protection.  He 
examined  my  credentials,  and  appointed  an  evening  to  meet  me  at 
the  office  of  the  British  Consul,  Mr.  Rogers,  Master  of  the  Lodge  at 
Beyrout.  That  meeting  was  to  me  a  most  interesting  occasion ;  an 
humble  individual  from  the  far  West,  brought  by  the  influence  of  Free- 
masonry alone,  into  the  most  cordial,  and  I  may  add,  confidential 
intimacy  with  the  immediate  representative  of  the  Ottoman  Empire. 

The  Pasha  gave  me  several  hours  of  his  time,  nor  was  it  until  the 
mystical  low  xii.  that  we  separated.  I  often  met  him  afterward  at 
his  own  palace. 

The  Pasha-General  (or  Vali),  Mohammed  Raschid  by  name,  is  a 
gentleman  of  pleasant  and  polished  manners,  short  and  compact  in 
build,  quick  in  comprehension,  and  thoroughly  educated  in  the  mili- 
tary and  diplomatic  service  of  his  country.  In  personal  intercourse, 
I  found  him  philosophical,  humorous,  argumentative,  and  critical,  by 
turns.  He  possesses  a  fine  taste  for  poetry,  and  the  belles-lettres,  and 
recited  for  my  gratification  various  passages  from  the  poets  of  Turkey 
and  Persia.  His  sense  of  the  humorous  is  more  French  than  Moham- 
medan ;  it  was  displayed  in  the  relation  of  witty  anecdotes  of  an 
Oriental  type.  Altogether  he  had  not  one  trait  of  my  traditional  idea 
of  a  Turkish  Pasha. 

Mohammed  Raschid  Pasha,  the  successor  of  "Cyrenius,- governor 
of  Syria  "  (Luke  ii.  2),  has  given  proofs  of  uncommon  vigor  during  the 
four  years  he  has  wielded  this  government,  having  made  travel  entirely 
safe  by  placing  garrisons  in  the  principal  towns,  and  inflicting  the 
Bternest  chastisement  upon  offenders.  He  was  deeply  interested  in 
my  errand.  In  common  with  all  the  craft  of  this  country,  he  was 
profoundly  astonished  that  a  brother  from  the  Western  Hemisphere 
should  traverse  a  quarter  of  the  globe  on  a  Masonic  errand ;  but 


AMERICAN    FREEMASONRY. 

fpressed  his  admiration  and  approval,  giving  me  valuable  informa- 
tion concerning  the  existence  of  an  ancient  form  of  Masonry  and  the 
chiefs  (Sheiks)  of  the  Desert  tribes,  of  whom  he  related  various  anec- 
dotes. 

His  name  is  the  same  as  Haroun-al-Raschid,  dear  to  every  school- 
boy's memory.  This  is  also  the  familiar  name  for  Rosetta  in  Egypt 
I  reminded  him  of  this  in  our  conversation,  and  referred  to  the  warm 
friendship  that  existed  between  his  great  namesake  and  Charlemagne 
of  France. 

In  his  position,  with  the  reputation  he  has  acquired,  such  a  man 
is  more  precious  than  fine  gold,  than  the  golden  wedge  of  Ophir 
(Isaiah  xiii.  12).  God,  who  weighs  the  path  of  tne  just  (xxvi.),  has  so 
weighed  his. 

In  answer  to  his  queries  as  to  the  purposes  of  the  Masonic  institu- 
tion in  the  United  States,  I  find  from  my  existing  notes  that  I  told 
him  the  institution  was  introduced  into  our  country  prior  to  1733. 
That  in  its  membership  many  of  the  statesmen  and  soldiers  of  our 
country  are  affiliated,  particularly  naming  Benjamin  Franklin  and 
George  Washington.  That  in  1826,  an  unfortunate  afiair  connected 
with  the  abduction  of  one  William  Morgan  brought  a  storm  of  popular 
wrath  upon  the  Order,  which  checked  its  spread  for  ten  years.  That 
the  society  has  entirely  recovered  from  this,  and  stands  to-day  one- 
third  of  a  million  strong,  working  in  more  than  eight  thousand  lodges. 
That  the  charities  of  the  Masons  are  large,  and  blest  of  the  Most 
High  God.  That  its  principles  of  conciliation  were  strongly  felt 
during  all  our  late  unhappy  civil  war,  and  are  doing  some  part  in 
restoring  the  era  of  national  brotherhood  and  good  feeling  for  which 
all  good  men  pray.  And  finally,  that  our  theory  does  not  permit  us 
to  receive  into  our  communion  any  but  men  of  good  morals,  true 
and  trusty.  All  of  this  agreed  well  with  his  own  conception  of  the 
great  fraternity. 

My  efforts  to  organize  a  Lodge  at  Damascus  are  recorded  in  the 
following,  article,  written  for  an  English  paper: 

THE   FIRST    MASONIC    MEETING   IN    DAMASCUS. 

Somebody  has  said,  and  very  truthfully,  that  "  Damascus  is  rightly 
named  the  oldest  city  of  the  world."  It  dates  back,  certainly,  ante- 
rior to  the  days  of  Abraham  (B.C.  1920,  or  thereabout),  having  been 
founded,  according  to  the  best  records,  by  Uz,  the  son  of  Aram,  the 
Bon  of  Shem,  the  son  of  Noah  (Genesis  x.  21-23).  If  we  omit  the 


MASONIC   MEETING.  553 

first  eleven  chapters  of  Genesis,  there  has  no  recorded  event  occurred 
in  the  world's  history  but  Damascus  was  in  existence  to  receive  it 
Had  the  good  hebdomadal  now  issued  at  Damascus  under  the 
auspices  of  H.  E.  Raschid  Pasha,  Governor-General,  entitled  La  Syria, 
been  commenced  a  few  thousand  years  earlier,  its  files  would  certainly 
be  a  thesaurus  of  historical  facts  unequalled  for  value,  because  con- 
taining nothing  less  than  that  "universal  history"  which  Sir  Walter 
Raleigh  and  other  aspiring  composers  meditated.  Go  back  as  far  as 
you  will  in  the  past,  and  there  was  always  a  Damascus.  In  the  writ- 
ings of  every  century,  for  more  than  four  thousand  years,  it?  name 
has  been  mentioned  and  its  praises  sung.  To  this  old  place  years  are 
only  minutes,  decades  only  flitting  trifles  of  time.  She  saw  the 
foundation  of  Baalbec  and  Thebes  and  Ephesus  laid ;  saw  them  grow 
into  mighty  cities,  and  amaze  the  world  with  their  grandeur;  saw 
them  desolate,  deserted,  and  given  over  to  the  owls  and  bats.  She 
saw  the  Israeli tish  empire  exalted,  and  she  saw  it  annihilated.  She 
saw  Greece  rise  and  flourish  her  twenty  centuries — then  die.  In  her 
old  age  she  saw  Rome  founded,  builded,  overshadow  the  earth  with 
greatness — then  perish.  All  that  has  ever  occurred  upon  the  earth 
Damascus  has  seen,  and  yet  she  lives.  She  has  looked  upon  the  dry 
bones  of  a  thousand  empires,  and  will  probably  see  the  tombs  of  a 
thousand  more  before  she  passes  from  the  stage.  Far  more  truth- 
fully than  the  "seven-hilled"  city  of  Rome  does  Damascus  deserve 
the  name  of  the  Eternal  City. 

Perhaps  all  this  is  not  much  to  the  purpose  in  inditing  an  article 
upon  "  The  First  Masonic  Meeting  in  Damascus,"  yet  it  is  this  which 
makes  all  the  difference  between  one  place  and  another.  The  new 
town  of  Pumpkiuville,  in  the  new  State  of  Nebraska,  is  a  more 
sightly  object  by  far  than  this  old  city  on  the  banks  of  the  Baraba, 
as  its" river  is  far  larger  and  more  noble  than  this;  but  who  can 
arouse  any  mental  or  spiritual  glow  in  Pumpkinville  ?  Every  drop 
in  the  flow  of  the  Baraba  is  historical  The  very  mud  of  which 
these  walls  of  Damascus  are  constructed  contains  the  dust  of  a 
thousand  generations.  Those  overhanging  hills  yonder  have  wit- 
nessed  in  their  grand  reticence  such  sights  as,  could  we  rend  their 
gecrets  from  them,  would  fill  volumes  of  history!  And  it  is  the  con- 
sideration of  these  things  that  made  my  entry  upon  the  top  c 
diligence,  through  that  mountain-cleft  and  down  by  that  , 
stream,  "  a  joy  forever." 

I  had  been  in  Damascus  but  a  day  when  I  paid  my  respects  to 


554  MASONIC   MEETING 

B.  M.  Consul,  Bro.  E.  T.  Rogers.  This  gentleman  is  acting  in  the 
absence  of  the  Consul-General  of  Syria,  Bro.  Eldridge ;  but  his  own 
official  position  is  here.  He  is  the  Worshipful  Master  elect  of  the 
Lodge  at  Beyrout,  Palestine  (No.  415,  Scotch  Registry),  while  Bro. 
Eldridge  is  Deputy  Grand  Master  of  the  district.  The  fame  of  Bro. 
Rogers  as  an  exemplar  of  gentlemanly  courtesy,  benevolence,  and 
the  largest  cosmopolitan  friendship,  has  gone  out,  long  years  ago,  and 
all  that  I  can  say  in  regard  to  it  is  just  so  much  surplusage.  His 
knowledge  of  Arabic  is  remarkable ;  even  here,  where  so  many 
foreigners  learned  in  that  rich  and  abounding  language  are  found. 
His  French  is  that  of  a  native.  Standing  as  the  representative  of  so 
great  a  nation,  foremost  among  Syrian  consuls,  his  own  urbanity, 
shrewdness,  knowledge  of  the  people  and  their  peculiarities  of  gov- 
ernment, religion,  and  habits,  place  him  far  higher  than  any  mere 
office  could  do. 

My  call  upon  "Bro.  Rogers"  (for  so  in  unbent  hours  he  delights 
to  be  styled)  was  at  an  opportune  moment.  We  had  "  spiritual 
affinities"  (whatever  that  expression  means).  An  hour  was  suffi- 
cient to  lay  the  foundation  of  a  friendship  that  mors  non  separabit. 
I  may  forget  a  good  many  things  that  have  occurred  in  my  life  (and 
hope  I  shall),  but  I  never  expect  to  forget  this  and  subsequent  confer- 
ences with  the  good  Consul  Rogers  at  Damascus. 

Amongst  my  first  requests  (and  goodness  knows  I  made  enough) 
was  a  personal  introduction  to  our  distinguished  brother,  the  Gov- 
ernor-General of  Syria,  Raschid  Pasha.  This  was  readily  had,  and 
"  we  three"  passed  an  evening  together  in  Bro.  Rogers'  parlor,  much 
to  my  gratification.  At  that  time  it  was  proposed  that  the  Masonic 
brethren  of  Damascus  should  be  invited  ere  long  to  come  together 
in  the  same  apartments,  to  become  acquainted  with  each  other,  to 
take  the  preliminary  steps,  should  prudence  dictate,  for  the  organiza- 
tion of  a  lodge  in  that  city,  and  to  hear  some  remarks  of  a  Masonic 
nature  from  myself.  This  meeting  was  accomplished  a  few  days 
later,  and  it  is  this  that  forms  the  basis  of  the  present  article,  to 
which,  I  must  confess,  there  has  been  a  most  unconscionable  preface 
tacked  on. 

It  was  Tuesday,  April  7,  1868,  that  this  "first  Masonic  meeting  in 
Damascus"  was  held.  There  were  present  ten  out  of  the  fifteen 
Masons  residents  of  that  city,  viz :  E.  T.  Rogers,  Worshipful  Master 
elect  of  Palestine  Lodge  (No.  415,  Scotch  Registry),  Beyrout,  Syria ; 
Joseph  Pilastre,  Lodge  La  Verite,  Marseilles,  Franc* ;  Christophe 


DEMANDS   FOB   A   LODGE.  /      553 

Delenda,  Lodge  Stella  Ionia,  Smyrna,  Asia  Minor ;  Nazif  Meshaka, 
Palestine  Lodge  (No.  415),  Beyrout,  Syria ;  Asari  Messedi6,  ibid, ; 
Mohee-ed-Deen,  son  of  the  Emir  Abd-el-Kader,  ibid. ;  Mohammed, 
son  of  the  same,  ibid.;  Ali  Ibn  Khalil  Mohassini,  ibid.;  Mustafa  Se- 
bace,  ibid.;  Saleh  Izdachir  Azm,  ibid.;  Robert  Morris,  Fortitude 
Lodge  (No.  47),  La  Grange,  Kentucky,  United  States,  and  Past 
Grand  Master. 

After  the  proper  introductions  and  tea-drinking— the  latter  being 
among  the  landmarks  of  Oriental  life— and  the  preparation  and  igni- 
tion of  a  suitable  number  of  cigarettes,  your  correspondent  was  called 
upon  for  his  remarks.  These  I  had  written  out  in  English.  Bro. 
Rogers  translated  them  into  French,  and  a  portion  of  them  from 
that  tongue  into  Arabic,  for  there  was  but  one  of  the  native  brethren 
present  (Bro.  Meshaka)  who  knew  any  English.  What  I  said  would 
not  be  worth  detailing  here,  except  as  it  forms  a  part  of  the  history 
of  this  transaction.  It  was  designed  to  be  a  sketch  of  the  practical 
influence  of  Freemasonry,  particularly  in  the  country  from  which  I 
came,  and  in  which,  as  my  hearers  had  already  been  informed,  I  had 
played  some  part  as  a  Masonic  writer  and  oral  instructor.  I  told 
them  that  "  in  the  United  States  we  had  more  than  eight  thousand 
lodges,  two-thirds  of  all  the  lodges  in  the  world;  that  these  are 
divided  into  forty-five  Grand  Lodges ;  that  there  is  very  much  zeal 
manifested  amongst  the  members  therein  affiliated,  who  love  one 
another  and  venerate  the  ancient  Order ;  and  that  they  had  sent  me 
to  this  distant  land  that  I  might  see  with  my  own  eyes  how  many 
Masons  are  here,  what  kind  of  persons  they  are,  and  what  is  their 
condition,  and  tell  them  the  facts  when  I  return  home." 

I  informed  them  that,  amongst  American  travellers  to  Damascus, 
there  are  very  many  Freemasons ;  but  they  cannot  find  their  brethren 
here  for  want  of  a  lodge.  When  I  notifiy  them  that  in  this  city  there 
are  not  less  than  fifteen  of  the  brotherhood,  they  would  be  equally 
surprised  and  delighted.  I  assured  them  that,  should  they  visit  the 
United  States,  they  would  find  lodges  in  every  town  and  village. 
Our  largest  city,  New  York,  not  one-half  so  large  as  Constantinople, 
has  alone  more  than  one  hundred  Freemasons'  lodges,  and  in  every 
American  lodge  they  would  be  greeted  with  welcome,  and  their 
acquaintance  hailed  with  undissembled  joy.  Then  I  informed  them 
that  the  grand  objects  of  Freemasonry  are  the  honor  of  God,  the 
increase  of  brotherly  love  among  men,  and  the  relief  of  the  poor  and 
distressed.  The  world  in  which  we  live  is  afflicted  with  sorrow  and 


/  566    J  MASONIC   ADDRESS. 

cursed  with  selfishness.  Strangers  are  usually  unkind  to  each  other, 
or,  at  the  best,  indifferent;  while  those  professing  opposite  creeds 
hate  and  worry  each  other.  But  in  this  ancient  and  world-wide 
institution  we  have  a  common  religion — the  worship  of  God — and  a 
common  language — that  of  sign,  the  hand-grasp,  and  the  word ;  so 
that  we  both  recognize  and  fraternize  with  each  other  through  it. 
In  its  rites  we  are  assimilated  by  solemn  obligations,  and  thus,  by 
duty  as  well  as  love,  we  become  brothers.  The  world,  it  is  true,  can- 
not understand  this;  nor  do  we  care  that  they  should.  Those  who 
have  not  penetrated  our  charmed  circle  are  slow  to  believe  this  ;  nor 
are  we  careful  for  that.  We  know  it  to  be  true.  I,  who  for  more 
than  twenty  years  have  travelled  from  lodge  to  lodge,  studying  and 
instructing — bearing  the  light  of  Freemasonry  as  upon  a  torch  from 
heart  to  heart — I  know  that  this  claim  is  well  founded.  Ever  since 
I  left  home  I  have  secured  additional  proofs  of  this.  The  steamer 
upon  which  I  crossed  the  Atlantic  had  among  its  officers  and  passen- 
gers ten  Freemasons.  We  recognized  each  other,  and  exchanged 
the  undying  proofs  of  sympathy  and  fraternal  esteem.  The  steamer 
which  brought  me  from  Marseilles  to  Beyrout  was  not  wanting  in  the 
"good  men  and  true"  who  bore  their  Masonic  covenants  gracefully. 
At  Smyrna,  where  I  remained  for  a  few  hours,  the  craft  conducted 
me  to  their  halls ;  heard  my  message  gladly ;  entertained  me  with  the 

p  largest  courtesy ;  nor  suffered  me  to  depart  until  they  had  loaded 
me  with  their  grateful  burdens  of  sympathy,  loving  wishes,   and 

/    layers.     At  Beyrout  I  found  more  than  sixty  Masonic  brethren. 

Then  I  said:  "I  came  to  this  city  (Damascus)  a  total  stranger. 
Our  kind  host,  Bro.  Rogers,  took  me  by  the  hand.  His  Excellency 
Raschid  Pasha  took  me  by  the  hand,  welcomed  me  as  a  brother, 
offered  me  every  facility  in  my  mission  that  his  exalted  station  per- 
mits, and  has  attached  me  to  his  staff"  as  an  honorary  member  dur- 
ing his  proposed  journey  to  Tadmor,  the  renowned  city  of  Kinir 
Solomon.  The  distinguished  Emir  Abd-el-Kader  took  me  by  the 
grip  fraternal.  In  like  manner  I  have  now  been  greeted  by  you. 
So  that,  only  one  week  a  resident  of  Damascus,  I  am  no  longer  a 
stranger  here,  but  an  acquaintance,  neighbor,  brother — yea,  a  brother 
of  the  same  Father — the  Father  in  Heaven.  Nor  do  I  believe  that 
ever  we  shall  become  strangers  to  each  other  again.  There  is  a 
Lodge  in  which  all  good  men  hope  to  meet — a  Master  at  whose  feet 
all  good  men  hope  to  worship  and  adore  through  the  cycles  of 
eternity." 


PETITION    FOR   A   LODGE. 

I  then  informed  them  of  the  difference  (of  rituals  merely)  between 
American  Freemasonry  and  that  in  which  they  had  heen  instructed. 
I  did  this  not  to  produce  confusion,  but  to  prevent  it.  Being  nearly 
all  young  and  inexpert  in  the  practice  of  the  Art— only  one  or  two 
of  them  ever  having  visited  lodges  other  than  their  own,  I  knew 
they  would  desire  some  light  upon  this  subject,  and  indeed  they  were 
greatly  entertained  by  the  sketch  of  the  esotery  of  Masonry  which  I 
communicated  to  them.  This  I  followed  by  the  poem  "  Our  Vows." 
Speaking  of  the  funeral  practices  of  American  Masonry,  I  sang  for 
them  the  opening  stanza  of  the  ode  which  all  our  American  breth- 
ren expect  will  some  day  be  sung  around  our  graves: 

"  Solemn  strikes  the  funeral  chime 
Notes  of  our  departed  time ; 
As  we  journey  here  below, 
Through  a  pilgrimage  of  woe." 

I  also  sang  a  verse  or  two  of  "  The  Gavel  Song,"  quite  popular  at 
present  in  American  lodges,  in  which  the  peculiar  concussion  of  that 
implement  is  introduced  as  the  chorus.  Following  this,  I  exhibited 
my  "  Mark  Master's  mark,"  explaining  my  chosen  device,  "  the  Bro- 
ken Column  ;"  also  my  ring  connected  with  the  Lodge  of  Perfection, 

A/,  and  A.-.  R-. ;  and  my  token,  in  marble,  of  the  Order  of  H m. 

These  things  were  absolute  novelties  to  my  hearers,  not  one  of  whom 
has  a  degree  above  the  third. 

But  I  might  spin  out  the  particulars  of  this  pleasant  meeting  to  a 
half  ream.  "We  adjourned  "in  peace  and  harmony'*  at  a  suitable 
hour ;  and  as  I  assumed  my  couch  at  "  Demetry's,"  I  endeavored  to 
conjure  up  the  spirits  of  the  departed  visitors  to  Damascus,  who 
could  have  shared  in  congenial  mood  all  the  events  of  the  occasion 
—Abraham,  Eliezer,  Jacob,  Elisha,  Paul,  the  great  Saladin ;  perhaps 
Mahommed  himself,  who,  I  suspect,  was  a  very  much  better  man 
than  our  Christian  historians  paint  him.  I  called  this  group  around 
me  and  mentally  repeated  before  them  the  sentiments  I  had  just  ex- 
pressed. Every  one,  without  exception,  indorsed  my  views. 

A  few  days  subsequently  to  this  meeting  a  petition  was  drafted  to 
the  Grand  Lodge  of  England,  soliciting  authority  to  organize  and 
work  King  Solomon  Lodge,  at  Damascus,  Syria.  This  was  signed 
by  the  following  brethren :  Bros.  E.  T.  Kogers,  H.  B.  M.  Consul ; 
Dr.  P.  Nataley,  JSTazif  Meshaka,  Secretary  to  American  Vice-Consul- 
ate; A.  Joseph  Pilastre,  LL.D;  Caisar  Messedie,  Abbas  Kulli  Khau, 


PETITION   FOE   A    LODGE. 

Persian  Consul  in  Damascus;  Mustapha  Effendi  Sabax,  Inspector 
of  Entailed  Property  of  the  Greek  Mosques ;  Mohammed  AH  Effeudi 
Mohasin,  Secretary  of  the  Grand  Court  of  Justice  in  Damascus ; 
Mohammed  Effendi,  son  of  His  Highness  the  Emir  Abd-el-Kader. 
Several  other  brethren,  native  and  foreign,  who  were  temporarily  ab- 
sent, afterward  attached  their  signatures  to  the  petition.  Several  of 
the  Beyrout  Masons  did  so.  The  following  American  Masons  asked 
leave,  upon  an  additional  slip,  to  be  attached,  viz :  Bros.  Robert 
Morris,  LL.D.;  Samuel  Hallock,  of  Lodge  No.  9,  Philadelphia,  Pa., 
U.  S.  A. ;  and  David  W.  Thompson,  of  Fulton  City  Lodge  (No.  147), 
U.  S.  A. 

In  the  petition  which  we  sent  forward  from  Beyrout  in  the  mail 
of  April  22d,  the  following  facts  are  set  forth:  "There  is  but  one 
Masonic  lodge  in  this  large  and  populous  Pashalic  of  Syria,  viz.,  Pales- 
tine Lodge  (No.  415),  working  under  warrant  from  the  Grand  Lodge 
of  Scotland.  This  is  at  Beyrout,  seventy-five  miles  northwest  from 
Damascus,  a  point  always  difficult  of  access,  often  inaccessible.  Besides 
this,  the  nearest  lodges  are  those  of  Alexandria,  in  Egypt,  and  Smyr- 
na, in  Asia  Minor.  The  petitioners,  although  in  good  strength  as  to 
numbers  and  social  position,  and  second  to  none  in  zeal  and  venera- 
tion for  the  Order,  are  thus  practically  debarred  from  all  enjoyment  and 
advantage  as  Masons ;  although  united  together  by  the  most  solemn 
and  enduring  covenants,  they  are  almost  strangers  to  each  other; 
although  amongst  the  crowds  of  tourists  who  annually  throng  Da- 
mascus are  many  competent  to  instruct  them  in  their  Masonic  duties 
and  obligations,  yet,  for  want  of  organization,  that  privilege  is  lost ; 
that  Masonic  charities  languish  from  the  same  cause ;  and  that  there 
is  no  city  over  which  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Grand  Lodge  of  England 
extends  in  which  the  establishment  of  a  lodge  is  so  imperatively  de- 
manded, or  where  a  respectable  circle  of  members  could  so  soon  be 
found  as  at  Damascus."  All  this  I  can  heartily  affirm,  and  would  add 
that  I  never  saw  a  company  of  Masons  in  which  such  large  social, 
commercial,  and  political  interests  were  represented  as  the  fifteen  at 
Damascus.  I  could  not  but  hope  that  these  facts  would  have  due 
weight  at  headquarters,  and  that  ere  the  hot  season  came  on  to  put 
an  end  to  the  Masonic  labor,  a  warrant  would  reach  these  shores  and 
the  organization  be  effected.  In  the  garden  of  Bro.  Rogers  there  IB 
an  ancient  mosque  that  seems  to  have  been  erected  on  purpose  for  a. 
lodge-room ;  and  in  this  I  trusted  to  see  King  Solomon  Lodge  at 
work  before  my  own  fiftieth  birthday  came  round.  But  in  all  this  1, 


SABBATH   IN    DAMASCUS.  559 

jwaa  disappointed,  the  Grand  Lodge  of  England  refusing  the  peti- 
/tion  on  the  ground  that  the  petitioners  were  all  members  of  lodges 

underjother  Grand  Lodge  jurisdictions. 

fy  opinion  of  the  religious  condition  of  affairs  at  Damascus  will 

appear  from  the  following  paper,  written  for  a  religious  journal  in 

the  United  States: 


A  SABBATH  IN  DAMASCUS. 

It  is  on  a  pleasant  morning,  this  of  March  29,  that  I  set  out  to 
apend  a  Sabbath  in  the  ancient  and  beautiful  city  of  Damascus.  The 
western  breezes  mingle  just  enough  of  the  flavor  of  Lebanon's  frost 
and  snow  with  the  flavor  of  apricot  blossoms  that  whiten  the  thou- 
sauds  of  groves  environing  the  city  upon  that  same  side,  to  soften  the 
hot  sunbeams  that  even  in  March  tell  of  a  torrid  June  and  make  all 
foreigners  turn  their  backs  upon  Damascus  before  July.  I  had  my 
matutinal  meal  at  7  A.M.,  composed  of  Damascus  bread  with  the 
grit  of  cornmeal  and  the  millstone  in  it,  and  honey  that  no  bees  of 
Hymettus  could  ever  match,  and  fruit,  jellies,  appetizing  and  deli- 
cious, a  boiled  egg  or  two,  good  coffee,  and  butter,  which  every  one, 
however,  must  salt  to  his  own  taste,  for  Damascus  cooks  will  not  salt 
it  for  you. 

I  had  learned  from  one  of  the  Protestant  ministers  here,  that 
Sabbath  services  are  divided  into  three  parts,  viz :  Religious  ser- 
vices in  the  Arabic  language  at  9  A.M.  ;  the  Sunday  school  immediate- 
ly following  it,  also  in  Arabic ;  and  services  in  the  English  language 
at  2  P.M.  I  am  resolved,  if  possible,  to-day  to  attend  all  three. 

I  hire  a  person  who  professes  to  know  the  way  to  the  Protestant 
church,  and  give  him  five  piastres  (about  thirty  cents)  for  his  trouble. 
It  is  a  good  half-hour's  walk  (about  a  mile  and  a  half)  to  the  Chris- 
tian quarters  ;  and  as  neither  of  us  can  in  the  least  understand  the 
other's  language,  I  am  practically  alone,  having  only  to  follow  my 
guide  and  attend  uninterruptedly  to  the  objects  around  me.  So  we 
go  past  the  crowd  of  donkeys,  ready  for  hire,  saddled  and  bridled,  in 
the  public  square,  each  with  his  half-nude  but  bright-eyed,  good- 
natured  boy,  who  will  run  along  contentedly  all  day,  urging  his  beast 
upon  a  trot,  if  you  will  only  give  him  a  little  backsheesh'  in  the  eve- 
ning; past  the  groups  of  horse-traders,  who  buy  and  sell  here  every 
mornin^  with  loud  words  and  gestures,  and  doubtless  any  amount  c 
lying  and  swindling ;  right  into  the  heart  of  the  bazaars,  all  open  and 


660  MASSACRE   OF    1860. 

driving  their  respective  trades  on  this  Sunday  morning,  as  a  hundred 
generations  have  done  iu  their  places  before  them  ;  through  all  man- 
ner of  crooked,  narrow,  filthy  lanes,  offensive  to  sight  and  sound, 
thronged  with  miserable  curs,  one  half  too  lazy  to  get  out  of  your  way, 
the  other  half  too  surly ;  past  hundreds  of  donkeys,  mules,  horses, 
and  camels,  the  latter  swinging  along  their  way  solemnly,  and  re- 
garding nothing  on  the  right  hand  or  on  the  left ;  past  the  mosques, 
at  the  gates  of  which  are  beggars  sitting  with  outstretched  hands, 
clamoring  for  alms  of  Christians  as  well  as  Moslems ;  past  a  group 
of  dervishes  with  their  conical  and  most  comical  felt  hats,  and  look- 
ing not  at  all  the  fanatics  they  are  said  to  be ;  and  now  we  come  into 
the  Christian  quarter ;  where  the  shops  are  mostly  closed,  and  where 
a  vast  ruin  of  many  acres  in  extent  points  to  the  scene  of  the  hor- 
rid massacre  of  July  9-11,  1860.  My  guide,  mistaking  his  way,  takes  me 
to  the  house  of  Rev.  Mr.  Robson,  who  by  good  fortune  is  to  preach 
the  first  sermon  to-day.  He  invites  me  into  his  house  with  Christian 
cordiality,  and  gives  me  the  opportunity,  while  preparing  for  church, 
to  glance  over  his  library  of  excellent  editions  of  good  books.  He  is 
evidently  from  Great  Britain,  for  all  the  volumes  bear  London  im- 
prints. 

"We  walk  together  to  the  church,  he  showing  me  more  in  detail 
the  ruined  houses  to  which  I  have  already  referred.  Happily  he  was 
out  of  the  city  the  week  of  the  fearful  massacre,  and  so  escaped.  The 
church  is  a  handsome  stone  edifice,  the  walls  nearly  thirty  inches 
thick,  capable  of  seating  200  or  300  persons.  It  is  divided  longitu- 
dinally by  a  green  curtain  separating. the  males  from  the  females,  and 
there  is  a  separate  door  for  each  sex  to  enter  and  depart.  Twelve 
windows  lighten  the  church.  At  each  door  hangs  a  heavily-quilted 
curtain,  the  corner  of  which  is  to  be  lifted  when  you  enter. 

This  is  the  Protestant  Church  of  Damascus.  About  fifty  persons 
are  present,  mostly  natives,  in  their  own  costumes.  Among  them  I 
was  introduced  to  the  venerable,  pious,  and  influential  Dr.  Meshaka, 
American  Vice-Consul  here,  and  truly  a  pillar  of  the  church.  He  has 
since  deceased.  His  two  sons  are  likewise  active  members  of  this 
congregation.  There  were  also  present  Rev.  Mr.  Crawford,  formerly 
of  Washington  County,  N.  Y.,  and  Rev.  Mr.  Wright,  of  Ireland,  two 
ministers  associated  with  Mr.  Robson  in  this  missionary  work. 

.The  service  began  by  a  song  in  Arabic  to  the  tune  of  Ortonville,  a 
prayer  by  Dr.  Robson,  to  which  the  deep  gutturals  of  that  language 
gave  great  solemnity,  and  the  reading  of  a  chapter  in  Genesis.  Then 


RELIGIOUS  SERVICES.  56] 

two  infants  were  baptized,  one  the  grandchild  of  Dr.  Meshaka,  the 
other  a  child  of  Rev.  Mr.  Crawford.  The  sermon  was  short,  and,  as 
I  could  not  understand  it,  I  gave  more  especial  attention  to  the  sur- 
.dings.  Behind  the  pulpit  was  painted,  in  Arabic  characters, 

3  Lord's  Prayer,  and  upon  tablets  on  each  side  the  Ten  Command- 
ments. . 

All  the  natives  wear  slippers,  which  they  can  readily  shuffle  off  and 
on,  as  occasion  requires.  One  elderly  person  I  noticed,  getting  tired 
of  our  method  of  sitting,  dropped  his  slippers,  drew  his  feet  up  under 
him  in  the  snuggest  manner,  and  so  seemed  to  enjoy  himself.  Al- 
most every  male  person,  particularly  the  boys,  wear  the  red  cap  (tar- 
boush),  which  they  never  take  off  in  church,  in  the  house,  or,  I 
presume,  even  in  bed.  The  women  had  bright-colored  handkerchiefs 
round  the  back  of  the  head  and  neck,  and  large  white  sheets  wrapped 
round  them,  as  is  universal  in  this  country.  It  seems  corpse-like 
until  you  get  accustomed  to  it.  Children  ran  about  and  were  noisy 
during  all  the  service.  This  church  has  a  genuine  American  stove 
and  pipe,  really  homelike. 

The  Arab  language  does  not  sound  agreeable  to  me  in  a  sermon. 
It  is  dry  and  hard,  like  the  basaltic  rocks  with  which  so  much  build- 
ing is  done  here.  Yet  as  a  written  language  it  is  one  of  the  most 
fruitful  and  perfect  in  the  world. 

This  church  was  only  finished  last  year,  at  an  expense  of  about 
$6,000.  The  floor  is  of  white  and  red  marble,  tessellated  in  handsome 
style,  but  the  main  body  of  the  church  has  little  or  no  ornamenta- 
tion. 

At  the  close  of  the  services  came  Sunday  school.  In  these  exer- 
cises I  took  an  interested  part,  telling  the  young  people  of  the  joys 
we  Christians  anticipate 

"  In  those  everlasting  gardens 
Where  angels  walk  and  seraphs  are  the  wardens ; 
Where  every  flower  brought  safe  through  death's  dark  portal 
Becomes  immortal." 

And  I  sang  for  them,  in  English,  such  songs  as  "Jesus  by  the  Sea," 
and  "  Shall  we  gather  at  the  River  ?  " 

The  Sunday-school  exercises  were  followed  by  services  in  the 
English  language,  conducted  by  Rev.  Mr.  Crawford.  Only  eight  or 
ten  persons  were  present,  nearly  all  English  and  American.  As  one 

36 


562  THE   GIANT  TREE. 

of  the  ministers  accompanied  me  to  the  hotel,  he  pointed  out  the 
reputed  house  of  Ananias,  described  in  the  ninth  chapter  of  Acts  as 
"  a  certain  disciple  at  Damascus,"  whom  the  Lord  commanded  in  a 
vision  "  to  go  into  the  street  which  is  called  Straight,  and  inquire  in 
the  house  of  Judas  for  one  called  Saul  of  Tarsus,  for  behold  he 
prayeth."  The  house  of  Judas  is  also  shown,  and  the  place  where 
Paul  vas  let  down  from  the  wall  in  a  basket,  and  anything  else  you 
choose  to  ask  for. 

I  was  also  further  shown  the  ruins  of  the  Christian  quarter,  laid 
waste  in  1860  by  the  fierce  fanaticism  of  the  natives.  All  was  de- 
stroyed, burnt,  or  plundered,  save  such  houses  as  stood  abutting  upon 
Moslem  houses,  and  which  could  not  be  destroyed  without  endanger- 
ing the  latter.  Mr.  Crawford  computes  the  number  of  persons  mur- 
dered in  this  city  at  2,500.  There  is  a  feeling  of  satisfaction  in  re- 
flecting that  the  Pasha,  the  Governor-General  of  that  period,  was  put 
to  death  by  his  Government  for  his  participation  in  the  crime,  to- 
gether with  one  hundred  and  fifty  of  his  assistants. 

Returning  to  my  hotel,  I  met  a  few  of  the  low-wheeled  wagons 
beginning  very  recently  to  be  used  in  Damascus  for  the  conveyance 
of  heavy  goods  through  the  city.  It  is  curious  that  I  should  stop 
and  look  with  so  much  interest  upon  them.  Listening  to  the  con- 
versation of  American  and  English  friends  long  resident  here,  and 
who  are  proficient  in  the  spoken  Arabic,  I  conclude  that  the  use  of 
that  language  imparts  a  deep  guttural  tone  to  the  voice,  which 
grates  harshly  upon  the  unaccustomed  ear.  As  the  Italian  is  the 
sweetest,  so  the  Arabic  and  the  Turkish  are  the  least  musical  of 
tongues.  Yet  the  poetry  of  either,  when  properly  recited,  is  not  un- 
pleasant 

Thus  passed  my  Sabbath  in  Damascus.  A  little  before  night  I 
took  another  stroll,  following  the  telegraph  wires  for  my  own  security, 
and  observed  the  Pasha's  palace  and  gardens,  the  castle,  and  the  other 
sights.  The  great  Tree  of  Damascus,  forty  feet  in  circumference,  I 
often  visit.  What  an  enormous  age  it  must  have  attained  to  !  I  like 
to  stand  near  the  doors  of  the  mosques  and  observe  the  worshippers. 
First,  they  wash  their  head,  feet,  and  hands.  Then,  standing  erect 
with  their  faces  toward  the  south  (toward  Mecca),  they  go  through 
the  traditional  gymnastics  and  repetitions  of  their  faith.  They 
show  no  displeasure  at  my  watching  them,  nor,  if  I  will  leave  my 
boots  at  the  door,  do  they  object  to  my  entering.  But  I  have  too 
much  respect  for  my  boots,  lest  they  should  walk  off  by  themselves 


VISIT  TO   THE   MOSQUE.  553 

before  I  return  !  This  religion  of  theirs,  sincerely  as  it  may  be 
believed  and  published,  does  not  prevent  one  of  the  faithful  from  rob- 
bing a  Christian — at  least,  this  is  their  own  confession. 

I  was  here  two  weeks,  intensely  busy  making  observations  and  tak- 
ing notes,  which  I  will  insert,  as  usual,  somewhat  at  random. 

Watching  the  operations  of  that  excellent  institution  the  Sunday 
school  with  prayerful  interest,  I  experienced  a  natural  pride  in 
the  reflection  that  to  my  own  country  must  be  accredited  the  origin 
of  Sunday  schools.  Ludwig  Hacker  founded  the  earliest  one  on 
record,  viz :  in  1740,  at  Ephrata,  Pennsylvania,  and  continued  it  reg- 
ularly until,  in  1777,  the  battle  of  Brandywine  broke  it  up.  That 
opened  by  Robert  Raikes,  so  often  referred  to,  was  not  commenced 
until  1782. 

In  one  of  my  rambles  I  took  considerable  time  in  visiting  a  Turk- 
ish mosque.  I  was  of  course  obliged  to  uncover  my  feet  before  en- 
tering. As  this  custom  is  so  thoroughly  Oriental,  it  will  be  well  to 
quote  some  thoughts  from  Dr.  Oliver,  exhaustive  of  the  subject.  In 
the  early  ages  of  the  world,  one  important  indication  of  pure  wor- 
ship consisted  in  taking  off  the  shoes  when  about  to  enter  a  temple 
dedicated  to  God.  This  was  a  very  ancient  observance,  as  we  may 
infer  from  the  interview  with  which  Moses  was  favored,  at  the  Burn- 
ing Bush.  The  heathen  nations  used  the  same  method  of  express- 
ing the  humility  of  their  devotion.  Not  only  did  the  wise  and  judi- 
cious Pythagoras  command  his  disciples  to  worship  with  bare  feel,  aa 
an  expressive  symbol  of  humility  and  contrition  of  the  heart,  but 
even  the  grosser  worship  of  the  Greeks  and  Romans  enjoined  the  same 
practice.  In  public  religious  processions,  the  priests  walked  bare- 
footed ;  the  high-born  ladies  of  Rome  did  not  dare  to  enter  the  Tem- 
ple of  Vesta  with  covered  feet;  and  in  Greece,  the  female  votaries 
walked  barefooted  in  the  procession  of  Ceres.  The  same  usage  pre- 
vailed equally  in  India  and  the  islands  to  the  west  of  Europe ;  and 
even  the  American  savages  thought  that  uncovering  the  feet  while 
in  the  act  of  devotion  was  a  sublime  method  of  paying  honor  to  the 
Deity.  Going  barefoot  was  a  sign  of  much  sorrow,  assumed  by  David 
to  express  his  woful  expulsion  from  his  own  country  by  his  rebe  • 
lions  son ;  and  distressed  captives  used  it  in  their  bondage  in  another 
country.  In  entering  the  Turkish  mosque  at  Beyrout,  therefore,  I 
was  performing  an  ancient  Masonic  and  devotional  exercise  in  re- 
moving my  boots.  I  left  them  outside,  however,  in  charge  of  the 
person  employed  to  guide  me  through  the  city.  No  other  ceremony 


§64  MOHAMMEDAN    RITES. 

was  required  of  me  but  this.  I  removed  the  thick  curtain  that  sepa- 
rated the  inner  apartment  from  the  outer,  reminding  me  of  the 
inner  vail  of  the  sanctuary,  and,  with  hat  on  head,  stepped  in  and  no- 
ticed as  long  as  I  chose  the  ceremonies  of  Turkish  worship.  Every 
worshipper  had  carefully  washed  his  face  and  his  feet  at  a  copious 
fountain  near  the  door  of  entrance,  and  the  whole  ceremony  of  wor- 
ship was  pursued  with  gravity,  decorum,  and  silence,  more  resembling 
the  work  of  a  Freemason's  lodge  than  anything  I  can  compare  it 
with.  The  forms  being  the  same  as  all  Mohammedans  use  in  pub- 
lic worship,  I  will  describe  them  again.  First,  the  worshipper 
opens  his  hands  and  raises  them  till  the  thumb  of  each  is  directly 
under  the  corresponding  ear,  the  fingers  being  erect.  This  is  the 
only  comical  part  of  the  proceeding.  It  does  indeed  remind  me  of  an 
asinine  movement  in  that  most  absurd  and  ludicrous  of  travesties, 
The  Soils  of  Malta,  As  the  worshipper  makes  this  initial  move- 
ment, he  says  to  himself,  not  very  loudly,  Allah  hu  akbar  (God  is 
great).  Then  whispering  to  himself  some  prayers  from  the  Koran,  he 
brings  his  hands  down  and  folds  them  together  over  the  girdle  which 
constitutes  as  essential  a  part  of  his  dress  as  a  soldier's  sword-belt  does 
of  his  uniform.  While  the  hands  are  thus  folded,  he  recites  the  first 
chapter  of  the  Koran,  and  other  sentences  from  the  same.  Then  he 
bends  gravely  forward  to  a  horizontal  attitude,  places  his  hands  upon 
his  knees,  and  repeats  three  times  an  ascription  of  praise  to  the  Great 
God.  Then  rising,  again  he  cries,  Allah  hu  akbar.  Now  he  falls  on 
his  knees,  and  bends  forward  to  the  floor,  laying  his  open  hands 
thereon,  and  his  face  on  the  floor  between  them.  This  movement 
brings  his  feet  perpendicular,  resting  upon  his  toes ;  in  other  words, 
the  soles  of  his  feet  are  turned  backward  and  entirely  exposed. 
With  his  body  bent  forward  in  that  manner,  the  worshipper  repeats 
three  formulas  of  petition  and  praise.  He  now  rises  to  his  knees, 
settling  back  upon  his  heels,  and  repeats  further  prayers.  He  has 
now  completed  one  round  of  the  ceremonies,  called  a  Rekah,  occupy- 
ing about  one  minute.  Rising  up  to  the  same  spot  where  he  began, 
he  then  commences  a  second  Rekah,  exactly  as  before,  and,  if  devo- 
tionally  inclined,  will  even  complete  a  third  or  more  before  he  re- 
tires. 

As  I  stood  "  within  the  vail "  of  that  Turkish  mosque  and  observed 
a  hundred  or  more  of  the  Mohammedan  worshippers,  representing  so 
many  countries  under  the  rule  of  the  Crescent — Levanters,  Syrians, 
Persians,  Nubians,  Egyptians,  Circassians,  Arabs — I  asked  myself,  in 


ANTIQUITY   OF   ORIENTAL   FORMS.  565 

a  spirit  of  unprejudiced  inquiry,  whether  these  grave  and  impressive 
solemnities  have  any  soul  in  them !  Every  one  turned  himself  in 
the  direction  of  Mecca,  where  it  is  believed  by  them  Mohammed  has 
for  twelve  centuries  lain  buried.  Every  one  seemed  wholly  absorbed 
in  devotion,  manifesting  a  power  of  isolation  and  abstraction  quite 
surprising.  These  ceremonies  are  the  traditional  exercises  of  1,200 
years,  and  practised  by  more  than  two  hundred  millions  of  worship- 
pers. I  cannot  look  on  them  otherwise,  therefore,  than  with  respect 
as  representing,  poor  and  heartless  as  they  may  be,  the  devotions  of 
nearly  one-fourth  the  human  race.  To  a  Freemason,  to  whom  all 
ancient  national  usages  have  (or  had  in  their  origin)  important  sym- 
bolical references,  these  Mohammedan  services  of  prayer  are  worthy 
of  the  closest  attention. 

Divested  of  their  references  to  the  arch-impostor  of  the  Orient, 
Mohammed,  how  beautifully  appropriate  would  be  these  entire  forms 
of  worship  in  the  Freemason's  lodge !  One  thing  remarkable  in  the 
Oriental  usages  is,  that  when,  in  my  remarks  on  the  Masonic  lodge  at 
Smyrna,  I  had  occasion  to  name  the  name  of  God,  every  one  rose, 
without  any  call  from  the  Master's  gavel !  This  is  solemn  and  grand, 
being  precisely  the  lesson  inculcated  on  the  Fellow  Craft  in  the  im- 
portant part  of  his  degree. 

"  That  NAME  !  I  saw  it  o'er  the  Master's  chair, 

That  hieroglyphic  bright;  and,  bending  low, 
Paid  solemn  homage  at  the  emblem  there, 
Which  speaks  of  God,  before  whom  all  should  bow." 

As  evidence  of  the  fidelity  of  the  Moslems  to  their  forms  of  wor- 
ship, I  instance  the  case  of  a  Turkish  family  we  had  on  board  our 
Mediterranean  steamer.  The  head  of  the  family,  at  certain  hours  of 
the  day  (one  of  them,  I  particularly  noticed  is  "high  twelve"),  spread* 
his  carpet  upon  the  deck  (having  first,  I  suppose,  washed  his  face  and 
feet),  casts  off  his  overshoes,  and  performs  the  entire  ceremyny,  just 
as  I  have  described  it,  regardless  of  the  jostling  of  the  sailors  am 
the  observations  of  by-standers.  I  suppose  he  found  out  the  direc- 
tion of  Mecca  (southeast  from  there)  by  the  ship's  compass,  as  the 
Jews  discover  the  location  of  Jerusalem  when  they  prepare  to  pray. 

Some  of  my  readers  will  understand  the  esoterioal  applicatic 
my  remarks  if  I  say  that,  however  Freemasonry  may  again  spread 
throughout  the  Eastern  world,  as  I  hope  and  believe  it  will  and 
whatever  influences  it  may  exercise  in  removing  national  prejuc 
and  restoring  ancient  brotherhoods,  and  I  sincerely  believe  in  .1 


566  VIEW    FROM   THE    MINARET. 

efficiency  for  this,  yet  Adoptive  Masonry  can  never  be  introduced  into 
Turkish  families,  so  long  as  the  present  system  of  isolation  and  vailing 
is  practised.  The  wife  of  the  Turk  who  was  a  passenger  with  us,  sat 
all  day  behind  a  screen,  formed  on  one  side  of  the  ship's  deck  (they 
are  deck  passengers),  and  when  she  came  out,  her  whole  form  was 
closely  vailed.  Observing  her  on  one  occasion  sitting  with  her  back 
toward  me,  and  apparently  unvailed,  I  quietly  slipped  round  to  the 
front.  But  not  so  quietly  but  that  she  heard  me.  By  the  time  I 
was  in  a  position  to  take  an  observation,  the  thick  cotton  cloth  was 
drawn  over  her  face  and  entire  form,  and  I  have  no  doubt  she  was 
laughing  to  herself  at  the  failure  of  my  attempt  The  vail  of  Jeph- 
thah's  daughter  will,  therefore,  not  be  raised  while  Mohammedan 
customs  prevail.  In  Shoberl's  Persia,  illustrations  are  given  of  this 
custom  of  vailing.  He  says :  "  There  are  Armenians  who  would  not 
know  their  own  wives  were  they  to  find  them  in  the  arms  of  another 
man.  Every  night  before  they  unvail,  they  extinguish  the  light,  and 
most  of  them  never  uncover  their  faces  in  the  daytime.  An  Arme- 
nian returning  from  a  long  journey  is  not  sure  to  find  the  same  wife. 
He  cannot  tell  whether  she  may  not  be  dead,  and  whether  some  other 
woman  may  not  have  stepped  into  the  place  of  the  deceased."  This 
is  very  bad. 

The  books  say  that  in  the  Great  Mosque  of  Damascus  is  preserved 
the  copy  of  the  Koran  that  Othman  had  in  his  hand  when  he  was 
assassinated ;  but  I  could  learn  nothing  of  it  here.  From  the  top  of 
the  minaret  of  this  mosque,  I  could  see  what  ^schylus  describes  as 

"  The  wandering  Arabs,  mounted  on  their  camels, 
Along  the  tufted  plain  outstretching  wide." 

I  look  eastward  from  this  minaret,  over  the  boundless  Desert  from 
whence  Abraham  and  Jacob  and  Zerubbabel  came,  where  a  human  cry 
falls  fiat  and  echoless  on  the  wild  waste,  muffled  and  dull,  like  my 
voice  three  months  afterward  in  the  sacred  chamber  of  Cheops. 
The  west  side  of  Lebanon,  being  terraced,  presents  varieties  of  infinite 
forms.  The  summits  often  appear  toothed  like  a  saw,  the  sides  torn 
and  creased ;  sometimes  a  hill  is  in  the  strangest  form  of  a  cone ;  the 
walls  of  the  cliffs  are  often  perpendicular  to  a  great  height  I  should 
like  to  see  a  good  painting  made  from  this  point 

They  tell  fearful  stories  here  of  the  locust  About  the  year  B.C. 
128,  no  less  than  800,000  persons  perished  in  Egypt  and  Libya  from 
diseases  generated  by  the  putrefaction  of  locusts,  which  had  infested 


WALKING  THE   BAZAARS.  56? 

the  land  that  year  in  unparalleled  numbers.  About  A.D.  40b,  Palestine 
was  visited  with  such  swarms  of  locusts  that  they  darkened  the  sun. 
After  eating  every  green  thing,  they  perished  in  countless  hosts, 
and  produced  pestilence  by  their  death.  The  Arabic  name  of  this 
"  Scourge  of  God  "  is  Sarsar.  In  Hebrew  it  was  Tslatsal,  as  in  Deut. 
xxviii.  42.  There  is  a  sparrow  called  by  himself  Smurmur  (and  his 
own  pronunciation  is  adopted  by  the  people),  that  uses  up  the  locust 
as  thoroughly  as  the  English  sparrow  did  the  measuring-worm  in  the 
New  York  parks. 

Walking  the  bazaars  recalls  my  experience  of  four  weeks  ago  at 
Smyrna.  Here  are  representatives  of  all  nations.  The  Aleppines 
and  Northern  Syrians,  with  their  fur-lined  jackets,  brush  against  the 
Arab  with  his  scanty  garb  of  Desert  life.  The  Armenian  in  blue, 
sober  costume,  jostles  the  Jew  in  black.  The  Persian,  with  dangling 
sleeves  and  high,  bell-shaped,  conical  (and  comical)  cap  of  black  wool, 
exchanges  curses  with  the  ubiquitous  dervish ;  while  the  American 
ego  laughs  at  all,  while  eating  an  inimitable  apricot  tart,  and  is  doubt- 
less laughed  at  by  all.  The  sheik's  abah  or  cloak  recalls  St.  Paul's 
garment  of  that  name,  which  he  unfortunately  left  at  Troas  (2  Tim- 
othy iv.  13)  when  he  needed  it  at  Rome ;  also  his  figure,  "  the  cloak 
of  covetousness  "  (1  Thess.  ii.  5),  which  I  am  afraid  fits  these  Desert 
Arabs  as  close  as  a  cloak  worn  by  a  street  operator  in  Wall  Street. 
The  manner  of  trading  suggests  the  term  "uttermost  farthing" 
(Matt.  v.  26)  used  by  Jesus,  for  these  merchants  do  cut  their  prices 
down  to  the  ultimate  para  in  making  your  change.  If  the  Mission- 
aries are  not  prejudiced  in  their  opinions  of  the  natives  before  conver- 
sion, their  character  is  low  and  degraded  as  that  expressed  by  Isaiah 
so  long  ago  (ix.  17):  "Every  one  is  a  hypocrite  and  an  evil-doer,  and 
every  mouth  speaketh  folly ;  "  "  a  people  of  unclean  lips ;  very  vulgar ; 
their  hearts  fat ;  their  ears  heavy ;  their  eyes  shut"  (vi). 

I  observed  the  rich  men's  houses,  with  their  single  door  "duly 
tyled  "  on  the  inside  by  the  Iowa  (porter),  who  sits  and  dozes  and 
smokes  on  his  stone  bench  there  day  and  night.  Also  the  poor  men's 
houses,  a  single  story  of  rough  stones,  their  mud  roofs  green  with 
grass,  the  owners  ragged  and  filthy,  sitting  and  dozing,  and  smoking 
their  poor  lives  out ;  in  one  instance,  kneeling  and  praying  on  the 
housetop,  "right  before  folks,"  facing  the  south  toward  Mecca,  M 
all  good  Moslems  should. 

The  position  of  Damascus  being  in  a  military  point  of  view  abi 
utely  indefensible,  the  city  has  often  changed  masters.    At  the  pres- 


6l.8  NOTES    FROM    MY    DIARY. 

ent  day,  any  company  of  soldiers  who  will  plant  a  few  cannon  01 
mortars  on  yonder  heights,  is  master  of  Damascus.  Our  accomplished 
brother  Lamartine  says:  "Damascus  is  stamped  on  the  world's  map 
by  the  finger  of  Providence  as  the  site  of  a  great  city." 

The  streets  of  Damascus  are  pleasant  combinations  of  slaughter- 
house and  privy.  Some  poet  gives  me  a  few  lines  appropriate  to  this 
description : 

"Many  a  grim  and  loathsome  lane 

Swarming  with  the  outcast  children  of  disease  and  want  and  pain, 
Where  the  foulness  of  pollution  on  the  pavements,  on  the  walls, 
Reeks   and  fumes   like   witch-sweat  poison  that  in   hidden  cavern 
falls." 

To  walk  here  at  night,  it  used  to  be  said,  four  dangers  await  you  : 
either  you  will  touch  a  leper,  or  you  will  be  kicked  by  a  camel,  or  bit- 
ten by  a  dog,  or  fall  into  a  pit.  You  might  suffer  from  all  four. 
The  profanity  of  the  people  is  wonderful.  As  much  ingenuity  is 
used  in  the  invention  of  new  oaths  in  Arabic,  as  in  the  discovery  of 
Howe's  sewing-machine.  I  should,  like  to  see  the  notice  set  up  here 
that  a  good  boy  of  mine  has  posted  up  in  the  railroad  office  at  Mem- 
phis junction,  Kentucky  :  "  No  swearing  allowed  here!"  It  would  be 
a  stunner.  I  boarded  at  Demetry's  Hotel,  in  Damascus,  for  two 
weeks.  Like  all  Damascus  houses,  it  has  its  fountain  in  full  play, 
throwing  up  jets  of  silvery  spray  into  the  air,  bubbling  and  mur- 
muring with  soothing  sound,  and  really  very  nice.  There  I  used 
to  sit  looking  out  of  my  second-story  window,  which  was  so  low  that 
the  camels  would  stick  their  snaky  heads  into  my  bedroom  and  dis- 
turb my  morning  repose.  Here  is  a  page  of  notes  made  from  that 
locality : 

The  costume  of  that  group  is  simple,  and  reduced  almost  to  first 
principles :  a  blue  cotton  shirt  descending  below  the  knees  and  tied 
with  a  girdle,  the  legs  and  feet  being  exposed ;  a  cloak  (abah) 
of  coarse,  heavy  camel's-hair  cloth,  usually  striped  black  and  white 
vertically,  with  holes  for  the  arms,  the  whole  cloak  simply  a  square 
piece  of  cloth.  Sometimes  the  foot  is  covered  with  the  buskin,  which 
is  nearly  the  ancient  cothurnus,  as  the  Classical  Dictionary  shows. 
Here  comes  a  Brahmin,  whose  fair  complexion,  regular  features,  and 
high  forehead  mark  the  purity  of  his  Aryan  origin.  He  needs  the 
0.  B.  of  a  Past  Master  concerning  "  haughtiness."  Here  comes 
a  Barbary  Jew  in  a  long,  loose  wrapper  of  dark  silk,  a  red  morocco 
belt  around  the  waist,  and  an  undershirt  of  striped  silk  with  silver 


XOTES   FROM   MY    DIARY.  569 

buttons.  He  has  an  aquiline  nose,  curved  like  an  eagle's  beak,  a  broad 
thoughtful  brow,  large  inimitable  eyes,  a  face  perfectly  oval,  with  an 
olive  tint  and  movable  lips.    Here  comes  an  opium-eater,  recogniz- 
able by  the  dull,  dead  appearance  of  his  eyes.    Now  I  am  watch- 
ing a  regular  gang  of  Arabs,  whom  a  traveller  in  North  Africa  thus 
describes:  "  Their  notions  of  meum  and  tuum  are  somewhat  vague, 
their  moral  code  discouragingly  shaky.     As  highway  robbers  they 
are  a  success;  and  their  achievements  in  grand  and  petty  larcenies 
are  of  the  most  eminent.     To  lie  when  the  truth  will  serve  them  as 
well ;  to  move  crookedly  from  sheer  love  of  double  dealing ;  to  play 
the  knave  systematically ;  to  practise  pious  frauds ;  to  covet  a  neigh- 
bor's goods,  and  seduce  a  neighbor's  wife,  are  the  cardinal  principles 
of  their  creed.     A  most  unchristian  hatred  of  Christian  dogs  is  best 
manifested  in  blood."    Here  comes  an  alarmed  horse,  unaccustomed 
to  the  noise  of  cities;  but  his  owner  pats  his  neck  and  speaks  to  him 
in  language  of  the  Desert,  and  the  creature  turns  his  head  and  gazes 
into  his  master's  face  with  a  look  quite  as  human  as  the  master  wears. 
Now  I  notice  the  deep  grunting  bass  of  the  camels,  the  resonant 
bray  of  the  donkey,  the  hoarse  guttural  oaths  of  the  Arabs,  the  shrill 
treble  of  the  donkey-boys,  the  sight  of  the  hideous  sepulchral-looking 
camels  with  their  shapeless  splay-feet  like  huge  sponges,  their  long 
crooked  necks,  and  serpent-like  heads — a  queer  tout  ensemble.    Here 
comes  a  hermit,  over  his  breast  and  shoulders  a  miserable  covering  of 
rags.     His  skin  dry,  horny,  and  blotched  with  large  scales,  which  on 
his  knees  look  like  ancient  mail.     Somebody  has  said  this  is  the  only 
country  in  the  world  where  romance  enters  into  the  daily  life  of  the 
people,  and  the  dreams  of  the  poet  ripen  into  realities.    And  now  I 
observe  one  of  the  noblest-looking  Arabs  I  have  yet  seen.   He  is  tall, 
thin,  his  beard  of  uncommon  whiteness  and  length,  his  face  dried, 
scarred,  wrinkled,  costume  clean,  turban  white,  red  jacket  and  sash, 
white  trowsers,  red  slippers.     The  ancient  Ionian  tunic  was  made  of 
linen,  having  short,  loose  sleeves.     The  Jews  here  dress  better  than 
in  Egypt,  where  the  costume  of  the  lower  class  is  a  yellow  cap  and 
gabardine,  distinctive  of  his  race.    His  misery  and  squalid  poverty 
there  are  stamped  upon  him.     Now  comes  a  group  of  women  who 
have  hired  a  lot  of  donkeys  to  ride  to  the  cemetery.    An  experienced 
lady  observer  describes  the  dress  of  a  woman  at  Acre  which  resem- 
bles one  of  these.     She  wore  a  tight-fitting,  crimson  jacket,  richly 
worked  in  gold,  over  a  white  satin  chemisette  heavily  embroidered,  a 
row  of  small  gold  buttons  up  the  front,  which  was  cut  very  low,  dis- 
playing the  neck  and  bosom.     Over  this  were  full  Turkish  trowsers 
(shintians)  of  rich  silk,  and,  falling  loosely  over  this,  a  straight  skirt 
or  petticoat  of  the  same  stuff,  terminating  in  a  train  behind.    A 
golden  girdle  was  around  her  waist,  and  she  wore  dainty  little  slippers 
and  a  little  round  cap.     In  short,  her  make-up  is  fearfully  elaborate. 
A  group  of  Bedouins,  with  their  long  guns  slung  on  their  shoulders, 
their  black  cloaks  fluttering  in  the  wind,  riding  quaint,  ungainly 
camels,  that  jerk  themselves  along  by  moving  both  feet  on  a  side  at 


670  NOTES   FBOM    MY    DIARY. 

once,  like  pacing  (racking)  horses.  Now  comes  along  a  dervish,  who, 
seeing  me  angry  at  an  insult  from  a  fellow  in  the  street,  kindly  sug- 
gested that  whenever  he  was  mad,  he  always  repeated  the  alphabet 
to  himself  before  he  spoke !  Now  we  have  a  merchant,  dressed  in  this 
style :  a  long,  red,  silk  gown ;  black  cloak  of  camel's  hair  over  the 
gown  ;  red  tarboush,  with  a  handkerchief  rolled  over  it,  of  green  and 
yellow,  in  the  form  of  a  turban ;  white  trowsers ;  large  red  shoes 
with  yellow  slippers  over  them;  blue  sash;  belt  containing  sword 
and  large,  showy  pistols.  And  now  a  group  of  tourists.  This  page 
would  be  incomplete  did  I  not  refer  to  the  costume  adopted  by  tourists 
fearful  and  wonderful  indeed.  One  of  these  (British,  I  suppose,  from 
his  speech)  wore  a  most  exaggerated  dress  of  coarse  tweed  stuff  of 
the  loudest  pattern,  having  a  short  shooting-jacket,  full  of  pockets, 
the  tighest  of  pantaloons,  the  most  complicated  straps  of  leather 
crossing  his  breast,  a  small  Scotch  cap  with  silver  thistle,  and  above 
all  wearing  an  enormous  nose,  ruddy,  colored  with  pale  ale  and  ex- 
posure to  the  sun — his  voice,  as  he  hails  me  sitting  in  my  window, 
"like  the  clarion's  blast"  (whatever  a  clarion  is;  I'm  sure  I  don't 
know).  An  Arab  sheikh,  introduced  to  me  in  my  bedroom,  seems 
extremely  anxious  for  me  to  adopt  the  nomadic  life,  offering,  if  I 
would  accompany  him  into  the  Desert,  to  be  my  father,  mother,  bro- 
ther, sister,  and  all  my  relatives.  I  could  not  quite  swallow  his  pro- 
testations, although  I  had  heard  of  one  of  these  sheikhs  whose 
name  was  Abd-el-Hag,  the  slave  of  Truth.  In  the  parlors  of  houses 
here,  they  have  large  mirrors  set  in  the  walls  on  all  four  sides,  with 
divans  covered  with  embroidered  damask  for  seats.  They  run  more 
to  looking-glasses  than  any  other  people  in  the  world.  And  here 
comes  a  large  iron-gray  horse,  strong  and  splendidly  built,  a  noble 
specimen  from  the  Shurnmr  stock.  No  price  is  set  on  such  an  animal 
here ;  the  owner  laughs  in  your  face  when  you  ask  him  for  it,  and  is 
only  mollified  by  backsheesh,  or  a  handful  of  cigarettes,  which  amounts 
to  the  same  thing.  Looking  north  from  my  window,  I  gaze  in  the 
direction  of  Baalbec,  where  are  the  great  stones  alluded  to  in  former 
pages.  If  some  thoroughly-instructed  architect  of  our  country  would 
simply  follow  up  traces  of  all  the  bevelled  (rabbeted)  stones  remain- 
ing in  situ  in  Syria  and  Palestine,  it  might  be  a  clue  to  the  whole 
subject  of  ancient-  architecture.  In  this  same  direction,  too,  I  have 
an  outlook  toward  Riblah,  and  a  vision  of  the  great  Nebuchadnezzar 
attaching  itself  to  the  place.  Here  he  waited,  immersed  in  his  mighty 

Erojects,  while  one  of  his  armies  was  besieging  Tyre  and  one  Jerusa- 
;m.  The  sacred  city  being  captured  after  a  seven-months  siege,  the 
spared  captives  were  led  here  bound  and  heart-broken,  to  be  dealt 
with  in  despotic  judgment  (Jeremiah  xl.).  There  that  Napoleon  of 
the  sixth  century  B.C.  sat,  "  the  stretching  of  his  wings  filling  the 
breadth  of  the  land  "  (Isaiah  viii.  8),  so  that  he  could  at  the  same 
time,  by  aides-de-camp  and  couriers,  direct  the  siege  of  Tyre  and  the 
Biege  of  Jerusalem,  and  yet  watch  and  countermine  the  plottings  of  con- 
spirators at  home.  The  plane-tree  yonder  is  the  largest  tree  of  these 


MASONIC   DIPLOMAS.  57] 

regions.  Readers  of  Pliny  will  remember  his  description  of  one  in 
Lycia,  measuring  thirty  feet  in  diameter,  in  which  the  Roman  Gov- 
ernor, Licinius  Mercianus,  gave  a  dinner  to  eighteen  guests.  De  Can- 
dolle,  in  Physiologie  Vegetale,  refers  to  one  in  the  valley  of  Bussek- 
dere,  three  leagues  from  Constantinople— a  plane-tree  one  hundred 
feet  high  and  twenty-three  in  diameter,  its  shadow  extending  over 
500  square  feet.  Here  comes  an  Arab  with  a  long  red  dress  stream- 
ing on  the  wind,  his  spear  poised  in  the  air,  dashing  at  full  gallop 
down  the  basalt-paved  road.  And  next  is  the  professional  oilman, 
saturated  with  grease.  He  sweats  oil,  literally  "larding  the  lean 
earth ;"  with  alkali  he  would  make  150  pounds  of  honest  soap. 

It  will  naturally  interest  the  reader  to  know  how  an  American 
Mason,  a  stranger  in  the  East,  whose  knowledge  of  the  Arabic 
language  is  exceedingly  limited,  can  give  and  receive  such  evidences 
of  a  Masonic  nature  as  will  render  it  safe  for  him  to  exchange  the 
secrets  of  Freemasonry.  I  cannot  make  this  matter  entirely  clear  in 
a  printed  volume,  but  will  say  that  much  of  the  recognition  is  con- 
nected with  the  exhibition  of  a  certificate,  called  among  us  a  diploma, 
furnished  us  by  our  Grand  Lodges  preparatory  to  going  abroad  As 
every  lodge  visited  in  the  Old  World  indorses  the  fact  and  date  of 
that  visit  upon  the  certificate,  great  facility  is  thereby  given  to  the 
Masonic  traveller  in  moving  from  place  to  place ;  and,  upon  the  whole, 
the  visit  to  a  strange  n  is  easier  in  those  countries  than  in  our  own. 

Among  the  foreign  consuls  throughout  the  Holy  Land,  much  the 
larger  number  are  Freemasons,  and  it  was  plain  to  see  that  even  their 
diplomatic  functions  were  made  easier  by  this  key  to  a  Moham- 
medan's heart. 

Among  the  lower  classes,  however,  there  exists  an  intense  prejudice 
against  Freemasonry,  amounting  to  bigotry.  This  is  seen  in  various 
things.  When  two  Arabs  quarrel,  it  shows  the  most  bitter  feeling 
for  one  to  call  the  other  a  Jew  (Yahoodi) ;  but  if  the  other  retaliates 
by  calling  his  opponent  Fermason  (that  is,  a  Freemason),  there  is 
nothing  for  it  but  a  fight ! 

This  city  embalms  the  name  of  the  Mason  brother,  soldier,  and 
statesman,  Fuad  Pasha,  who  died  GrandVizier  of  Turkey.  Sent  here  in 
1860  by  the  Turkish  Government  to  repress  disorders  and  punish  the 
guilty  murderers  of  the  Christians,  he  displayed  the  highest  qualities 
of  a  stern  yet  humane  ruler. 

This  man  would  have  been  deemed  a  remarkable  one  in  any  age 
and  any  nation.  So  able,  enlightened,  and  progressive  a  statesman 
s  not  to-day  to  be  found  in  Europe.  He  was  a  good  linguist,  was 


572 


FUAD    PASHA. 


forward  in  science,  a  poet,  and  a  writer.  His  political  career  was 
active  and  brilliant  The  terrible  massacres  at  Damascus  in  1860, 
described  in  this  volume  in  connection  with  the  name  of  Abd-el- 
Kader,  were  put  down  and  punished  under  his  stern  superintendence ; 
shortly  after  which  he  was  appointed  Grand  Vizier.  In  1863  he 
resigned  that  post  and  became  War  Minister,  then  Minister  of  Foreign 
Affairs.  He  was  born  in  the  year  1814.  To  such  men  the  maxim 
of  the  Zendavesta  fitly  applies:  ""We  praise  all  good  thoughts,  all 
good  words,  all  good  deeds,  which  are  and  will  be,  and  we  likewise 
Veep  clean  and  pure  all  that  is  good." 


MOSAIC  GOAT'S-HEAD. 


CHAPTER  XXXL 

ABD-EL-KADER. 

URING  my  stay  in  Damascus  an  interview  was  arranged 
for  me,  through  the  courtesy  of  Brother  Nazif  Meshaka, 
with  the  thrice-celebrated  Ex-Sultan  of  the  Arabs,  Hia 
Highness  Abd-el-Kader. 

This  illustrious  Arab,  whose  chivalrous  defence  of  the 
persecuted  and  distressed  at  Damascus,  in  1860,  has  ennobled  Freema- 
sonry and  human  nature  itself,  was  born  in  May,  1807,  near  Oran,  in 
Algeria,  North  Africa.  His  father  was  a  celebrated  Marabout,  a  class 
of  Mussulmans  who  profess  extraordinary  devotion  to  the  religion  of 
Mohammed.  At  the  age  of  five  the  lad  could  read  and  write ;  at 
twelve  he  was  proficient  in  the  Koran  and  religious  works,  and  tradi- 
tions of  his  creed ;  at  fourteen  he  was  enrolled  as  a  Hafiz,  or  person 
who  had  committed  the  entire  Koran  to  memory.  He  is  a  man  who, 
even  at  the  age  of  sixty-one,  exhibits  fine  symmetry  and  compactness 
of  figure,  being  about  five  feet  six  inches  high,  and  having  a  frame 
formed  for  untiring  activity.  As  a  horseman  and  swordsman  he  is 
unexcelled. 

The  countenance  of  Abd-el-Kader,  in  his  prime,  was  of  the  purest 
classic  mould,  and  singularly  attractive  from  its  expressive  and  almost 
feminine  beauty.  His  nose,  middling-sized  and  delicately  shaped, 
was  a  pleasing  mean  between  the  Grecian  and  Roman  types.  His 
lips,  finely  chiselled  and  slightly  compressed,  bespoke  dignified 
reserve  and  firmness  of  purpose;  while  large,  lustrous,  hazel  eyes 
beamed  from  beneath  a  massive  forehead  of  marble  whiteness,  sub- 
dued and  melancholy  softness,  or  flushed  with  the  rays  of  genius 
and  intelligence. 

This  splendid  specimen  of  the  Arab  race  of  North  Africa,  marn. 
at  the  age  of  fifteen,  agreeably  to  the  injunction  of  the  Koran,  « 
young;"  but,  contrary  to  the  practice  of  Mussulmans  generally,  he 


674  ABD-EL-KADER. 

was  content  with  one  wife.    At  the  age  of  sixteen  he  made  the  pil- 
grimage to  Mecca  in  company  with  his  father. 

In  1830,  the  capture  of  Algiers  by  the  French  opened  the  way  for 
the  exercise  of  his  patriotic  impulses.  At  the  age  of  twenty-three- 
he  began  to  move  the  hearts  of  his  people  by  an  eloquence  which 
ranked  him  at  once  as  one  of  the  masters  of  human  speech.  He 
formed  a  league  of  the  Arab  tribes  against  the  invaders,  and  on  the 
21st  of  November,  1832,  was  elected  by  acclamation  their  Sultan- 
His  speech  of  acknowledgment  was  an  effort  perhaps  never  paral 
leled.  Not  for  minutes,  but  for  hours  did  the  soldier-orator  poui 
forth  one  continued  stream  of  burning  and  impassioned  eloquence. 
He  expatiated,  in  heart-rending  tones,  on  the  sins,  the  iniquities, 
the  crimes,  the  horrors,  which  polluted  the  land.  In  vivid  terms 
he  depicted  Heaven's  judgments  overtaking  a  godless  and  abandoned 
people;  and  now  again  he  conjured  up  before  the  minds  of  his  audi- 
ence, in  characters  of  flame,  the  appalling  picture  of  their  country 
ravaged  by  the  infidel,  their  domestic  homes  violated,  their  temples 
desecrated. 

For  years  he  conducted  this  war,  with  varied  success,  against  the 
French,  when  a  temporary  peace  was  concluded,  and  Abd-el-Kader 
began  to  establish  his  government  on  the  principles  of  peace.  A  mint 
was  opened  and  various  coins  struck,  rising  in  value  from  four  cents 
to  one  dollar,  each  having  upon  one  side  the  words,  in  Arabic,  "  It 
is  the  will  of  God."  Cannon  foundries  and  manufactories  of  muskets 
were  established.  He  even  designed  to  form  schools  and  colleges, 
but  the  exigences  of  his  active  life  never  permitted  him  the  oppor- 
tunity. For  three  years  he  devoted  his  immense  energies  to  the  arts 
of  civilization  and  national  improvement ;  and  could  he  have  contin- 
ued unmolested  this  pacific  career,  it  is  impossible  to  over-estimate 
his  influence  as  one  of  the  great  men  of  his  age. 

Being  a  man  of  large  possessions,  he  imitated  the  conduct  of  Wash- 
ington in  refusing  all  personal  compensation  from  the  national  treas- 
ury. Noted  for  his  liberality,  he  spent  his  own  surplus  of  income  year 
by  year,  in  assisting  the  poor,  the  traveller  especially,  and  those  who 
had  been  disabled  in  the  war.  His  military  code  has  this  paragraph 
concerning  himself :  "  II  Hadgi  Abd-el-Kader  cares  not  for  this  world, 
and  withdraws  from  it  as  much  as  his  avocations  will  permit.  He 
despises  wealth  and  riches.  He  lives  with  the  greatest  plainness  and 
sobriety.  He  is  always  simply  clad.  He  rises  in  the  middle  of  the 
night  to  recommend  his  own  soul  and  the  souls  of  his  followers  to. 


ABD-EL  KADEB. 


576 


God.    His  chief  pbasure  is  in  praying  to  God,  with  fasting,  that  hia 
sins  may  be  forgiven." 

On  the  18th  of  November,  1838,  war  was  recommenced  between 
Abd-el-Kader  and  the  French,  and  continued  until  the  23d  of 
December,  1847,  when  he  finally  surrendered  himself  to  that  great 
power,  and  was  taken  to  France.  In  his  surrender,  he  had  stipulated 
to  be  removed  either  to  Egypt  or  Syria;  but  the  French  Revolution 
of  1848,  and  the  establishment  of  the  new  order  of  affairs  in  France, 
nullified  the  bond,  and  he  was  detained  in  various  fortresses  until 
1853.  While  there,  he  composed  two  remarkable  volumes,  one  on 
"The  Unity  of  the  Godhead,"  the  other  called  "  Hints  for  the  Wise, 
Instruction  for  the  Ignorant."  The  first  is  an  exposition  of  Moham- 
medanism as  against  Paganism. 

In  1853,  a  pension  from  the  French  Government  of  $20,000  per 
annum  was  settled  upon  Abd-el-Kader  for  life.  Having  given  his 
parole  not  again  to  engage  against  the  French,  he  settled  first  at 
Broussa,  in  Turkey,  then,  in  1855,  at  Damascus,  in  Syria,  where  on  his 
arrival  the  entire  population  turned  out  to  meet  and  greet  this  dis- 
tinguished chief.  More  than  one  thousand  of  his  old  chiefs  and  sol- 
diers gathered  round  him  here,  and  constituted  themselves  his  suite 
and  body-guard.  Of  these  I  saw  many  while  in  Damascus.  He  opened 
a  theological  school  in  Mohammedan  doctrines,  with  about  sixty 
scholars,  and  twice  a  day  taught  them  the  dogmas  of  his  faith. 

We  now  come  to  that  epoch  in  the  life  of  Abd-el-Kader  which 
gives  him,  in  the  sight  of  Freemasons  and  of  all  lovers  of  justice 
and  mercy,  so  distinguished  a  place.  Heretofore,  we  have  chiefly 
viewed  him  as  a  brave  and  accomplished  warrior  and  indomitable 
patriot,  first  in  the  attack,  last  in  the  retreat,  neither  sparing  himself 
or  others  while  there  was  a  hope  of  accomplishing  good  in  his  in- 
vaded country.  Then  we  viewed  him  patiently  submitting  to  adverse 
fortune,  going  cheerfully  into  exile,  and  devoting  his  splendid  gifts 
of  mind  and  soul  to  the  spiritual  improvement  of  his  race.  But 
Providence  had  reserved  him  to  be  the  protector  of  Christians. 
Strange  and  unparalleled  destiny ;  he,  an  Arab,  was  to  throw  his 
guardian  aegis  over  the  outraged  majesty  of  Europe;  a  descendant 
of  the  Prophet  was  to  shelter  and  protect  the  spouse  of  Christ. 

The  Christians  of  Syria,  who  form  already  a  great  and  constantly 
increasing  proportion  of  the  population,  have  ever  been  viewed  by 
the  Turks  with  gloomy  jealousy.  Their  increasing  numbers,  wealth, 
and  prosperity  are  to  the  Turks  a  perpetual  scource  of  exasperation 


576  ABD-EL-KADER. 

exciting  in  their  breasts  feelings  of  hatred  and  revenge.  Of  ull  the 
parties  who  most  exhibit  these  sentiments,  the  Druses,  who  inhabit 
Mount  Lebanon,  are  the  most  vindictive.  In  May,  1860,  a  civil  war 
between  them  and  the  Christians,  which  had  long  been  fostered  and 
encouraged  by  the  Turks,  broke  out.  and  in  a  few  weeks  made  the 
Lebanon  district  a  scene  of  fire  and  blood.  The  Christians,  dispersed 
and  unprotected,  were  hypocritically  inveigled  into  the  Turkish  gar- 
risons, where,  as  soon  as  collected  in  sufficient  numbers,  they  were 
massacred  by  thousands. 

Abd-el-Kader,  hearing  of  the  storm  that  was  about  to  burst  over 
the  Christians,  wrote  to  the  Druse  chiefs,  warning  them  of  the  con- 
sequences to  themselves  of  such  an  outbreak,  and  characterizing  their 
plundering  propensities  as  unworthy  of  men  of  good  sense  and  wise 
policy.  Three  times  he  called  upon  the  Governor  of  Damascus,  and 
stated  his  apprehensions  of  an  outbreak,  before  he  could  secure  a 
distribution  of  arms  to  his  followers.  On  Monday,  July  6,  1860,  in 
the  afternoon,  the  slaughter  began.  The  town  had  risen.  Abd-el- 
Kader  hastened  to  meet  and  restrain  the  rioters.  He  harangued  them  ; 
threatened  them ;  expostulated  with  them ;  but  in  vain.  In  three 
hours  the  Christian  quarter  of  Damascus  was  in  flames. 

The  hot  blast,  fraught  with  the  moans  of  the  tortured  and  the 
shrieks  of  the  defiled,  rolled  over  the  city  like  a  gust  from  hell.  Our 
hero,  with  one  thousand  of  his  Algerines,  hurried  from  place  to  place, 
rescued  and  collected  such  as  he  could,  and  hurried  with  them  to  his 
own  house.  This  being  soon  filled,  he  induced  his  neighbors  to  evac- 
uate their  dwellings  and  fill  them  likewise  with  refugees.  Then  he 
conducted  a  great  multitude  to  the  castle.  For  ten  days  he  labored 
in  this  work,  by  day  and  night. 

Once  the  mob  approached  his  house,  and  with  frantic  yells  de- 
manded that  he  should  deliver  up  the  Christians  to  them.  He  drew 
his  sword,  and,  accompanied  by  a  strong  band  of  his  followers,  at  once 
went  out  to  confront  the  yelling  crowd. 

"  Wretches,"  he  exclaimed,  "  is  this  the  way  you  honor  the  Pro- 
phet ?  May  his  curse  be  upon  you  1  Shame  on  you,  shame  !  You 
will  yet  live  to  repent.  You  think  you  may  do  as  you  like  with  the 
Christians,  but  the  day  of  retribution  will  come.  The  Franks  will 
yet  turn  your  mosques  into  churches,  my  brothers  !  Stand  back,  or 
I  will  give  my  men  the  order  to  fire." 

The  mob  withdrew.  All  the  European  consuls  flew  to  Abd-el- 
Kader  for  protection,  and  remained  his  guests  for  more  than  a  month. 


ABD-EL-KADEB. 

At  last  the  whole  body  of  refugees  were  forwarded  to  Bey  rout  under 
protection  of  his  men. 

He  was  at  length  enabled  to  repose.  He  had  rescued  twelve  thou- 
sand souls  belonging  to  the  Christians  from  death,  and  worse  than 
death,  by  his  fearless  courage,  his  unwearied  activity,  and  his  catholic- 
minded  zeal.  All  the  representatives  of  the  Christian  powers  then 
residing  in  Damascus  had  owed  their  lives  to  him. 

Thus  was  the  most  chivalrous  act  of  the  nineteenth  century  con- 
summated. The  civilized  world  acknowledged  the  grandeur  of  the 
deed,  and  sent  him  marks  of  gratitude.  From  France,  he  received 
the  Grand  Cordon  of  the  Legion  of  Honor ;  Russia  honored  him 
with  the  Grand  Cross  of  the  White  Eagle ;  Prussia,  with  the  Grand 
Cross  of  the  Black  Eagle ;  Greece,  the  Grand  Cross  of  the  Saviour, 
etc.  From  America  he  received  a  brace  of  pistols  inlaid  with  gold. 
The  Masonic  Order  in  France  presented  him,  though  not  at  that 
time  a  Freemason,  with  a  magnificent  star. 

In  June,  1864,  this  illustrious  man,  then  in  his  fifty-seventh  year, 
was  made  a  Freemason  in  the  Lodge  of  the  Pyramids  (Loye  des 
Pyramides),  at  Alexandria,  in  Egypt.  It  may  readily  be  conceived 
that  the  time-honored  principles  of  this  Order  found  a  worthy  lodg- 
ment in  his  heart.  He  has  more  than  once  expressed  his  opinion 
as  to  the  high  character  of  Freemasonry,  and  maybe  looked  to  at 
all  times  to  bear  a  similar  testimony.  Three  of  his  sons  are  also 
Freemasons. 

The  last  years  of  Abd-el-Kader  are  being  spent  in  a  round  of  daily 
life  marked  with  charity  and  humanity. 

The  simplicity,  the  scrupulous  regularity,  the  exact  and  unvarying 
conscientiousness  which  guide  and  influence  his  actions,  operate 
upon  the  thread  of  his  existence  with  all  the  harmony  of  fixed  laws. 
He  rises  two  hours  before  daybreak,  and  is  engaged  in  prayer  and 
religious  meditation  till  sunrise,  when  he  goes  to  the  mosque.  After 
spending  half  an  hour  there  in  public  devotions,  he  returns  to  his 
house,  snatches  a  hurried  meal,  and  then  studies  in  his  library  till 
midday.  The  muezzin's  call  now  summons  him  again  to  the  mosque, 
where  his  class  is  already  assembled  awaiting  his  arrival.  He  takes 
his  seat,  opens  the  book  fixed  upon  for  discussion,  and  reads  aloud,  con- 
stantly interrupted  by  demands  for  those  explanations  which  unlock 
the  varied  and  accumulated  stores  of  his  troubled  years  of  laborious 
study,  investigation,  and  research.  The  sitting  lasts  for  three  hours. 
Afternoon  prayer  finished,  he  returns  home,  and  spends  an  hour 
with  his  children,  especially  his  ten  sons,  examining  the  progress 

37 


578  ABD-EL-KADEB. 

they  are  making  in  their  studies,  etc.  Then  he  dines.  At  sunset  he 
is  again  in  the  mosque,  and  instructs  his  class  for  one  hour  and  a 
half.  His  professor's  duties  for  the  day  are  now  over.  A  couple  of 
hours  are  still  on  hand,  which  are  spent  in  his  library.  He  then  re- 
tires to  rest. 

This  ancient  and  honorable  man  is  punctual  in  his  charities. 
Every  Friday,  the  street  leading  to  his  house  may  be  seen  filled  with 
the  poor,  gathered  together  for  the  appointed  distribution  of  bread. 
The  poor  who  die,  if  utterly  without  means,  not  merely  in  his  own 
quarter,  but  throughout  Damascus,  are  buried  at  his  expense. 

My  reception  by  this  distinguished  brother  was  cordial  in  the  ex- 
treme. He  kissed  me,  according  to  the  Oriental  manner,  led  me  to 
the  "highest  seat,"  or  the  seat  of  honor,  in  his  private  apartment, 
and  entered  into  the  most  confidential  communications  with  me. 
He  is  a  melancholy  man  in  temperament,  feeling,  as  he  told  me,  that 
his  mortal  work  is  done  ;  yet  when  I  assured  him  of  the  world- wide 
respect  entertained  for  him,  and  invited  him,  in  behalf  of  the  Free- 
masons of  the  United  States,  "to  come  and  make  his  abode  in  our 
free  laud,"  his  eye  flashed,  and  his  voice  rolled  in  his  throat  as  I  can 
imagine  it  might  have  done  in  the  days  when  he  had  fifty  thousand 
men  at  his  back.  I  secured  an  excellent  photographic  likeness,  taken 
by  one  of  the  first  artists  in  Paris. 

The  full  name  of  our  heroic  brother  is  Abd-el-Kader-Ulid-Mahid- 
din.  He  is  a  great  admirer  of  George  Washington,  of  whom  he  said 
to  me,  in  effect,  that  he  was  magnanimous  in  sentiments,  sublimely 
raised  above  sublunary  and  selfish  considerations,  depressed  by  the 
malevolent  accusations  of  his  enemies,  but  serene,  because  sustained 
by  his  conscience,  the  type  of  the  unselfish,  whole-souled  enthusiast 
He  described  to  me  the  ferocity  of  mountain  warfare.  A  Druse 
chief  sat  quietly  smoking  amidst  a  pile  of  thirty  Christian  heads,  slain 
in  battle  as  expiatory  sacrifice  for  the  death  of  his  son  in  battle. 
The  British  Consul,  meeting  him  under  those  circumstances,  was 
greeted  with  the  extraordinary  expression,  "  May  God  bless  you  for 
your  thoughts  of  peace ! "  His  salutations  were  fervid  and  extrava- 
gant as  those  of  his  race.  "  This  day  will  be  as  white  as  milk,"  said 
he  on  my  introduction.  He  took  my  hand,  and  pressing  it  tenderly 
to  his  forehead  and  lips,  invoked  upon  me  the  richest  blessings  of 
Allah.  I  could  not  help  recalling  my  images  of  Abraham.  He  does 
not  wear  the  tarboush  or  the  clipped  costume  coming  into  use 
among  the  Turks  of  these  degenerate  days ;  but  has  his  fine  head 
overshadowed  by  a  turban  of  prodigious  amplitude,  long  majestic 


ABD-EL-KA.DER.  579 

beard,  and  robe  descending  to  his  heels.  A  friend,  who  visited  the 
old  Chateau  of  Pan,  the  prison  of  Abd-el-Kader,  described  the  plain 
chamber  still  shown  to  visitors,  where  he  passed  seven  weary  years 
looking  out  upon  the  Spanish  hills ;  and  the  graves  of  five  of  his 
children,  in  full  view,  give  point  to  the  sad  story.  I  reminded  him 
of  it,  and  his  eyes  filled  with  tears. 

The  Emir  is  accounted  one  of  the  finest  horsemen  and  swords, 
men  of  the  East.  They  say.  of  him:  Eques  ipso  melior  Betters 
pJionte  ;  a  better  rider  than  he  who  mounted  Pegasus.  Shakspeare's 
estimate  of  true  manhood  elegantly  applies  to  Abd-el-Kader : 

"His  words  are  bonds,  his  oaths  are  oracles, 
His  love  sincere,  his  thoughts  immaculate, 
His  tears  pure  messengers  sent  from  his  heart, 
His  heart  as  far  from  fraud  as  heaven  from  earth." 

In  relation  to  his  Masonic  initiation,  I  translate  freely  from  a 
pamphlet  published  at  the  time  under  the  title  of  A  Solemn  Assem- 
blage of  the  Lodge  Henry  IV.  (Paris,  France),  on  the  1st  September, 
1864 :  The  Initiation  of  Abd-el-Kader. 

Preliminary  Notice. — All  Europe,  nay,  all  the  civilized  world 
shuddered  with  indignation  and  grief  at  the  recital  of  the  events  of 
1860,  which  bathed  Syria  in  blood,  when  the  ignorant  and  benighted 
masses,  animated  with  fury,  rushed,  under  the  influence  of  fanaticism, 
upon  the  unfortunate  Christians.  Humanity,  dumb  with  horror  at 
the  sight  of  such  atrocities,  experienced,  however,  one  consolation  at 
the  sight  of  a  person  who,  although  a  Moslem,  long  ago  an  enemy  to 
us  (the  French),  made  his  own  gallant  and  generous  breast  a  buckler 
to  our  brethren.  The  Emir  Abd-el-Kader  saved,  at  the  peril  of  his 
own  life,  12,500  persons  devoted  to  the  sword;  thus  performing 
through  them  one.  of  those  splendid  deeds  which  history  will  render 
imperishable.  Upon  it  our  admiration  beams  without  a  cloud.  All 
who  feel  in  themselves  hearts  susceptible  to  noble  emotions  and  to 
the  love  of  humanity,  render  praise  to  him  who  came  to  give  such  a 
shining  example  of  tolerance  and  devotion. 

Freemasonry,  also,  is  aroused  by  the  performance  of  acts  so  con- 
formable to  the  aims  of  her  institution.  The  Lodge  "Henri  IV.," 
amongst  others,  decided  that  a  letter  of  congratulations  should  be 
addressed  to  the  Emir,  accompanied  by  a  jewel  of  honor. 

This  letter,  recorded  in  the  minutes  of  the  session  which  adopted 
it,  closes  with  the  following  words : 


580  ABD-EL-KADEB. 

"By  this  title  (che  friend  of  humanity)  we  offer  you  th&  accom- 
panying jewel  ;  and  should  you  consent  to  receive  it,  whenever  you 
chance  to  look  upon  it,  let  it  express  to  you  yonder,  far  away  in  the 
Eastern  world,  that  it  comes  from  hearts  that  beat  in  unison  with 
yours  ;  from  men  who  hold  your  name  in  veneration  ;  from  a  fra- 
ternity which  loves  you  already  like  its  own,  and  that  is  trusting,  if 
its  extremely  close  bands  permit,  to  count  you  among  the  number 
of  the  adepts  of  the  institution." 

The  Emir's  reply  was  not  long  delayed.  It  contained,  as  will  be 
seen  further  on,  a  formal  request  for  Masonic  initiation.  The  Lodge 
"  Henri  IV."  regarding  the  fact  of  such  an  initiation  as  a  happy 
opportunity  for  Masonry  in  the  Orient,  received  this  request  with 
eagerness,  and  immediately  set  about  to  discover  means  for  its  accom- 
plishment. A  second  epistle  was  written  to  the  Emir,  laying  before 
him  the  conditions  of  Masonic  initiation,  and  the  questions  to  which 
he  should  respond.  He  replied  in  the  most  frank  and  categorical 
manner.  Satisfied  with  his  responses,  the  Lodge  instructed  Brother 
Wannez,  its  Worshipful  Master,  to  come  to  an  understanding  with  the 
Grand  Orient  of  France,  as  to  the  proper  manner  of  procedure  with 
regard  to  this  initiation,  which  offered  a  serious  obstacle  in  the 
absence  of  the  recipient.*  His  Highness  Prince  Lucien  Murat,  de- 
siring to  bestow  upon  Freemasonry  so  glorious  an  acquisition,  held 
himself  in  readiness  with  a  good  will  to  do  his  utmost  to  favor  the 
same  ;  and  we  had  prepared  ourselves  to  consummate  this  grand  act, 
when  the  events  which  disturbed  the  good  harmony  in  the  bosom  of 
the  Order,  caused  an  unfortunate  delay  in  its  execution  (referring  to 
one  of  the  periodical  schisms  in  the  Grand  Orient  at  Paris). 

Upon  the  elevation  of  the  illustrious  Marshal  Magnan  to  the 
Grand  Mastership,  the  Lodge  desired  to  advance  the  matter  by  vir- 
tue of  the  authority  which  had  been  granted  to  it  by  the  preceding 
administration.  The  obstacles  opposed  to  it  were  now  overcome.  It 
was  known  that  a  French  Lodge  was  held  at  Alexandria,  "  Lodge  of 
the  Pyramids,"  and  report  affirmed  that  the  Emir  Avas  upon  a  voyage 
to  those  countries.  The  Lodge  "  Henri  IV.,"  considering  that  by 
means  of  this  Lodge  in  Egypt  it  could  attain  the  end  so  desired,  decided 
to  write  to  that  respectable  workshopf  to  assume  the  management  of 


*  Abd-el-Kader,  beinjj  »  prisoner  on  parole  at  Damascus,  could  not  then 
tave  by  consent  cf  l>e  French  Government,  nor  then,  without  personal  inconvenience 
ind  expense. 

+  A  pleasant  technicality  in  the  French  system  ;  atelier  denoting  a  workshop. 


ABD-EL-KADER.  5H) 

the  whole  affair,  and  proposed  to  it  to  perform,  according  to  the  cir- 
cumstances of  the  case,  the  initiation  of  the  Emir  Abd-el-Kader  in 
the  name  ol  the  Lodge  "  Henri  IV." 

With  a  courtesy  and  good  will  altogether  Masonic,  Brother  Gustos, 
the  Worshipful  Master,  let  us  know  that  Pyramid  Lodge  was  will- 
ing to  conform  itself  to  our  wishes,  and  that  the  movements  of  the 
Emir,  then  coming  from  Mecca  and  Medina,  should  be  regarded,  in 
order  to  profit  by  the  occasion  which  would  then  be  presented. 
All  the  necessary  documents  were  expedited,  and  by  the  end  of  June, 
1864,  we  were  officially  informed  that  the  Emir  had  been  initiated  to 
the  First  Grade,  "  and  that  to  complete  the  work,  that  Lodge  had  con- 
ferred upon  the  illustrious  recipient  the  Second  and  Third  Grades,  in 
conformity  with  the  interval  of  time  fixed  by  the  statutes.  These 
tidings,  which  even  exceed  our  dearest  wishes,  Brother  Poullain,  the 
Worshipful  Master  of  the  Lodge  "  Henri  IV.,"  was  requested  to  make 
known  immediately  to  our  Illustrious  Grand  Master.  At  the  same 
time  he  imparted  to  him  our  intention  to  convoke  a  solemn  assembly, 
to  give  this  event  such  publicity  as  it  demanded,  and  to  salute  the 
new  initiate,  by  laying  before  the  eyes  of  our  brothers  of  all  rites  the 
correspondence  interchanged  on  the  subject 

July  13,  the  Illustrious  Brother  Blanche,  Grand  Master  Adjunct,* 
addressed  us,  in  the  name  of  the  Illustrious  Grand  Master,  the  sub- 
joined paper : 

"  GRAND  OKIEKT  OF  FRANCE  :  SUPREME  COUNCIL  OF  FRANCB 
AND  THE  FRENCH  POSSESSIONS. 

"  ORIENT  OF  PARIS,  July  13, 1864 

"  BROTHERS  :  It  is  with  very  lively  pleasure  that  our  Thrice  Illus- 
trious Grand  Master  has  received  the  communication  announcing  to 
him  that  the  Respectable  Lodge  of  the  Pyramids  has  initiated  in  the 
name  of  your  Workshop,  and  by  virtue  of  a  delegation  which  you 
had  given  them,  the  Emir  Abd-el-Kader. 

"I  am  instructed  to  address  you  his  felicitations  upon  this  initia- 
tion, due  to  your  conception  and  your  perseverance;  he  has  received 
with  interest  the  minutes  which  you  presented  to  him. 

«  All  French  Masonry  will  unite  with  eagerness  in  the  sentimen 
of  our  Grand  Master;  and  for  my  own  part,  I  have  the  good  fortune 


*  This  officer  is  the  acting  Grand  Master ;  the  Grand  Master  elect  being  ion*  noble- 
man  or  gentleman  in  high  station,  elevated  on  account  of  his  rank. 


682  ABD-EL-KADEB. 

to  insert  in    the  Bulletin   Official*  the   minutes  which  you  have 
given  us. 

"  Receive,  brethren,  the  assurances  of  our  affectionate  sentiments, 
"  The  Grand  Master  Adjunct,  in  Charge  of  the  Administration. 

"ALFRED  BLANCHE." 

The  Solemn  Assembly,  set  for  the  1st  of  September,  1864,  was  held 
with  great  eclat,  and  we  have  deemed  it  for  the  best  interests  of  Free- 
masonry to  publish  in  extenso  the  minutes  of  that  occasion,  together 
with  all  the  documents  which  had  been  previously  interchanged. 
Such  is  the  subject  of  the  present  publication. 

To  THE  GLORY  OF  THE  GRAND  ARCHITECT  OF  THE  UNIVERSE. 
In  the  Name  and  by  the  Authority  of  the  Grand  Orient  of  France : 

A  SOLEMN  ASSEMBLY. 
September  1, 1864.     Year  of  True  Light,  5864 

The  Respectable  Lodge  of  St.  John,  under  the  distinctive  title 
"Henri  IV.,"  regularly  convoked  and  fraternally  assembled,  opened 
upon  the  First  Degree,  under  charge  of  Brother  Acarry.  The  min- 
utes of  the  meetings  of  August  4th  and  of  the  18th  were  read,  and 
adopted  without  alteration.  Entrance  to  the  Temple  was  then  ac- 
corded to  visiting  Brothers,  who  promptly  ranked  themselves  along 
the  columns.  Brother  Senior  Warden  announced  that  various  de- 
putations were  in  attendance  in  the  porch  of  the  Temple.  The 
Lodge  arose  and  received  in  due  order  the  visiting  Lodges.f  The 
Venerable  Brothers  (Lodge  officers)  of  all  the  rites  took  their  places 
in  the  East. 

The  Worshipful  Master  informed  the  Lodge,  through  an  official 
communication  from  the  Secretariat  of  the  Grand  Orient,  that  the 
Grand  Master  Adjunct,  being  absent  from  Paris,  could  not  assist  at 
our  assembly  to-day.  He  then  announced  the  business  of  the  meet- 
ing. He  rehearsed  the  proceedings  which  had  resulted  in  the  initia- 
tion of  the  Emir  Abd-el-Kader,  by  the  Lodge  of  the  Pyramids,  in 

*  The  Official  Journal  of  the  Grand  Lodge,  published  monthly  at  Paris,  is  so 
•tyled. 

t  It  is  thought  unnecessary  to  encumber  our  notes  with  mere  lists  of  names  Six 
lodges  were  represented  on  the  occasion — from  Paris,  Boulogne,  Argentcuil,  Rueil, 
and  Pontoise.  B.  M. 


ABD-EL-KADER. 

the  Orient  of  Alexandria,  in  the  name  of  the  Lodge  "  Henri  IV.," 
and  he  announced  that  the  new  initiate  had  been  solemnly  pro- 
claimed and  acclaimed  an  active  member  of  the  Lodge  "  Henri  IV." 

The  Brothers  who  in  the  present  ceremony  represented  th« 
Emir  and  the  Lodge  at  Alexandria,  retired  to  the  Pas-Perdus* 
They  were  immediately  .announced  by  the  Senior  Warden,  and, 
upon  the  invitation  of  the  Worshipful  Master,  a  deputation  re- 
tired to  conduct  them  in.  The  Brethren,  standing  in  due  order, 
eword  in  hand,  the  Worshipful  Master  commanded  the  door  opened, 
and  the  cortege  entered,  in  the  following  order,  viz:  Grand  Expert, 
two  Masters  of  Ceremonies,  Banner  of  the  Lodge,  Masters  bearing 
Lights;  the  three  delegates,  the  one  in  the  centre  bearing  on  a 
waiter  the  official  documents ;  then,  marshalling  the  procession,  the 
two  Experts ;  finally,  the  younger  members  of  the  Order. 

In  passing  under  "  the  arch  of  steel,"  the  delegates,  through  their 
spokesman,  Brother  Silberman,  one  of  themselves,  thus  spoke : 

"Worshipful  Master,  and  you,  my  Brethren:  We,  the  delegates 
of  the  Lodge  of  the  Pyramids,  Orient  of  Alexandria,  have  the  honor 
to  place  in  your  hands  the  official  minutes  concerning  the  initiation 
of  Abd-el-Kader.  This  was  done  by  our  body  upon  the  invitation 
of  the  Lodge  « Henri  IV.,'  June  18,  1864.  The  Worshipful  Master, 
in  the  name  of  the  Lodge,  made  the  acknowledgments." 

Then,  the  delegates  having  resumed  their  places,  the  Junior  Warden, 
Brother  Arnoult,  read  the  first  letter  addressed  to  the  Emir  by  the 
Lodge: 

"Thrice  Illustrious  Emir:  Wherever  virtue  moves  with  splendor, 
wherever  tolerance  and  humanity  have  been  deemed  safeguards  and 
honors,  Freemasons  hasten  to  acknowledge  and  proclaim  him  who, 
at  the  price  of  great  sacrifices,  accomplishes  the  work  of  God  upon 
earth,  and  lends  to  the  oppressed  a  tutelary  and  disinterested  support 

"  It  is  because  Freemasonry  feels  that  these  men  are  her  own,  and 
that  they  march  in  the  same  path,  she  feels  the  need  of  them,  and 
cries  out  to  them,  Tlianks  and  courage,  in  the  name  of  the  unfor- 
tunate, in  the  name  of  the  Society,  in  the  name  of  the  grand  princi- 
ples upon  which  her  Institution  rests. 

"On  this  account,  thrice  illustrious  Emir,  we,  the  members  of 
the  Masonic  Lodge  Henri  IV.,  of  the  Orient  of  Paris,  following  th« 
example  of  so  many  others,  but  with  no  less  ardor  and  gratitude, 


*  A  technical  term  for  an  adjacent  apartment. 


ABD-EL-KADER. 

add  this  modest  wreath  to  the  crown  of  benedictions  which  the  civil- 
ized world  places  to-day  upon  your  noble  and  sacred  head.  We  come 
to  offer  our  tribute  of  admiration  to  him  who,  superior  to  all  preju- 
dices of  caste  and  religion,  has  shown  himself  to  be  a  man  before  all, 
and  has  only  listened  to  the  inspirations  of  his  own  heart  in  oppos- 
ing an  inexpugnable  rampart  to  the  furies  of  barbarity  and  fanaticism. 

"  Yes,  you  are  a  true  representative,  the  veritable  type  of  that  vigor- 
ous Arab  nationality  to  which  Europe  is  indebted,  in  a  great  part, 
for  its  civilization  and  the  sciences  which  enlighten  it.  You  have 
proved  by  your  acts  and  by  the  magnanimity  of  your  character,  that 
this  race  has  not  degenerated ;  and  that  if  it  appears  to  be  inert,  it 
can  arouse  itself  for  great  works  by  the  appeals  of  a  genius  as  pow- 
erful as  your  own.  After  having  wielded  your  sword  with  a  glory 
and  a  grandeur  that  France,  then  your  enemy,  knows  how  to  admire, 
you  gained  yet  greater  glory  by  the  generosity  and  devotion  of  which 
you  gave  such  proofs  in  favor  of  civilization.  The  Omars,  the  Aver- 
roes,  the  Alfarabi,  you  have  resumed  in  yourself  alone ;  the  warriors, 
the  wise  men,  the  philosophers,  of  whom  your  nation  is  proud,  by  so 
just  a  title. 

"To  you,  then,  thrice  illustrious  Emir,  to  you  be  renewed  glory 
and  thanks!  The  God  whom  we  all  adore — the  God  who  from  his 
throne  established  all  generous  hearts — was  able  to  achieve  his  work 
by  your  hands.  Would  it  not  truly  appear  that  you  have  been 
brought,  after  so  many  vicissitudes  and  through  the  secret  design  of 
Providence,  into  the  midst  of  those  Oriental  countries,  to  scatter  the 
clouds  of  ignorance,  extinguish  the  torches  of  brutal  fanaticism,  and 
to  cause  to  remount  to  the  grade  of  civilization  the  unhappy  people 
misled  by  ignorance?  We,  too,' share  in  pitying  them  so  much  as  to 
expect  that  the  result  of  your  holy  influence  will  advance  our  lighte 
and  our  virtues. 

"  Freemasonry,  which  has  for  its  principles  the  existence  of  a  God 
and  the  immortality  of  the  soul,  and  for  the  foundations  of  its  doings 
the  love  of  humanity,  the  practice  of  tolerance  and  of  universal  fra- 
ternity, cannot  without  emotion  look  upon  the  grand  spectacle  whjch 
you  have  presented  to  the  world.  She  recognizes,  she  claims,  as  one 
of  her  own  children  (at  least  by  a  community  of  ideas),  the  man  who, 
without  ostentation,  out  of  his  first  inspiration,  put  so  perfectly  into 
practice  her  sublime  device,  ONE  FOR  ALL  ! 

"It  is  under  this  impression,  thrice  illustrious  Emir,  that  the 
Lodge  Henri  IV.,  a  little  group  of  the  great  Masonic  family,  ad- 


ABD-EL-KADER.  533 

dresses  you  this  weak  but  most  sincere  expression  of  their  ardent 
sympathies,  and  offers  you  the  homage  of  its  symbolical  jewel.  This 
modest  emblem  has  no  value  save  by  these  devices,  the  Square,  Level, 
Compass,  teaching  Justice,  Equality,  Fraternity,  but  it  glitters  upon 
the  consecrated  breasts  of  humanity  and  lives  upon  the  love  of  one's 
fellows.  By  virtue  of  this  we  offer  it  to  you;  and  should  you  deign 
to  accept  it,  whenever  your  eye  falls  upon  it,  let  it  assure  you  in  the 
distant  East,  that  it  comes  from  hearts  beating  in  unison  with  yours, 
from  men  who  already  love  you  as  their  own,  and  who  hope  that  if 
their  exceedingly  restricted  rules  may  permit,  they  may  count  you 
among  the  number  of  the  adepts  of  their  Institution." 

Brother  Laverriere,  representing  the  Emir  Abd-el-Kader,  made 
the  following  response : 

"  Praise  to  God  alone ! 

"  Honorable  and  Kespectable  Gentlemen,  Chiefs,  and  Dignitaries 
of  the  Eminent  Society  of  Freemasons,  which  may  God  the  Most  High 
protect ! 

"  After  you  have  caused  me  to  obtain  my  wishes  and  my  consider- 
ation, which  prove  the  sincerity  of  my  heart,  it  is  proper  that  I  should 
say  to  yon  that,  pending  the  consideration  of  your  noble  sentiments, 
and  while  I  was  reflecting  that  the  Great  Creator  of  the  world  has 
not  accorded  to  his  servants  all  these  benefits  at  one  time  only,  but 
little  by  little,  by  which  they  were  able  to  relish  constantly  their 
savor,  and  have  toward  him  a  continuity  of  uninterrupted  recog- 
nitions, I  received  the  kind  letter  of  your  Excellencies,  a  letter  which 
I  owe  to  that  good  friendship  of  which  I  entertain  no  doubt,  so  that 
the  beautiful  flower,  of  which  the  allegorical  excellence  surpasses  the 
odor  of  the  precious  and  perfect  rose,  and  which,  by  the  indication 
of  justice,  the  equality  and  the  fraternity  which  the  jewel  represents, 
excels  the  wisdom  of  Aristotle,  and  comprehends  the  excellent  quali- 
ties and  the  desire  of  possessing  them.  That  is  then  the  token  of 
your  fidelity  and  the  summit  of  my  unspeakable  joy: 

«  1st.  For  the  sake  of  the  matter  itself,  since  I  consider  myself  to 
have  discovered  the  true  treasures  of  the  world. 

"  3d.  For  the  sake  of  the  good  chance  of  its  arrival:  may  God  be 
honored  and  exalted !  because  I  consider  that  when  you  desire  a  com- 
munity of  my  thoughts  with  yours,  when  one  favor  among  the  favor 
of  God  of  whom  I  have  been  privy  hitherto,  a  particular  gifl 
which  he  gives  me  neither  cost  nor  pain. 

"Praise  to  God  !  and  from  me  felicity  and  happiness  concerning 


586  AJJD-EL-KADEB. 

that  of  which  you  accord  me  this  favor,  because  t  corroborate  and 
approve  the  thought  that  your  intentions  are  good  and  your  ideas 
just  There  is  no  better  testimony  that  your  inclination  agrees  with 
mine,  than  your  declaration  that  I  have  succored  my  brothers  for 
humanity's  sake,  and  that  I  was  an  aid  to  them  in  the  time  of  bar- 
barous animosity  which  threatened  them.  What  excellence  is  there 
that  surpasses  the  love  of  man !  0  philanthropy !  if  that  love  is 
not  found  in  me,  have  I  sincere  religion  ?  God  forbid  !  Verily,  love 
is  the  true  foundation  of  religion.  God  is  the  God  of  all,  and  He 
loves  us  all. 

"In  reality,  I  address  to  your  very  excellent  Society  this  letter 
for  three  reasons,  conformable  to  my  desire,  viz : 

"  1st  To  manifest  my  gratitude  to  your  Highnesses  for  the  beau- 
tiful tokens  which  you  wish  me  to  accept,  and  which  have  duly 
arrived,  but  of  which  I  am  not  worthy.  Yet  that  is  not  the  cause 
of  my  great  affection  for  you  all,  and  for  my  particular  propensity 
for  your  good  association  ;  although  its  value,  in  my  eyes,  is  greater 
than  that  of  the  crown  which  adorned  Alexander,  son  of  Philip  the 
Greek,  and  I  receive  it  with  joy  and  high  veneration. 

"2d.  For  this  your  Excellencies  well  know,  that  I  have  a  very  true 
desire  to  associate  myself  with  your  fraternity  of  love  and  to  partici- 
pate with  your  purposes,  within  the  scope  of  your  excellent  rules, 
because  I  am  disposed,  in  this  way,  to  display  my  zeal.  And  when 
you  shall  make  known  to  me  the  conditions  and  the  obligations 
which  will  be  imposed  upon  me,  I  will  faithfully  observe  them  as 
your  Excellencies  shall  indicate  to  me.  And  I  shall  esteem  myself 
extremely  happy  when  I  shall  meet  the  members  of  your  Society,  so 
considerable  and  so  distinguished,  because  of  the  advantageous  opin- 
ion which  you  entertain  toward  me. 

"  3d.  In  order  that,  henceforth,  a  friendly  correspondence  may  be  es- 
tablished between  us  without  interruption,  because  I  have  prayed  to 
do  this  as  you  believe  I  ought  to  work,  in  performing  with  joy  that 
which  the  statutes  of  your  friendly  Society  exact  of  me,  when  I  sht 
understand  where  I  shall  go  to  acquire  my  obligations. 

*  I  conclude  by  renewing  the  expression  of  my  acknowledgment 
to  you  all,  at  the  present  time  and  place,  and  by  addressing  the 
Burance  of  my  respectful  consideration  for  all  the  Society  at  the  foi 
cardinal  points. 

"May  the  Moat  High  God  render  you  satisfied  and  contenl 
Amen.  Your  faithful  friend, 

"  ABD-EL-KADEB." 


ABD-EL-KADEB.  537 

Brother  Schneitz  read  the  second  letter  addressed  by  the  Lodge 
to  the  Emir,  conceived  in  the  following  terms : 

"Thrice  Illustrious  Emir:  It  is  with  an  unspeakable  sentiment  of 
happiness  and  gratitude  that  we  have  received  the  very  beautiful  and 
excellent  response  by  which  you  honored  our  fraternal  felicitations; 
and  it  was  quite  impossible  to  have  replied  sooner  to  the  desire  which 
you  manifested  to  unite  with  us  in  the  place  of  the  Masonic  frater- 
nity. "We  hasten  to  repair  this  painful  but  involuntary  delay,  and 
advance  with  no  other  preamble  to  the  capital  point  of  the  question. 

"In  your  venerated  letter,  thrice  illustrious  Emir,  you  said  to  us  : 

"  '  In  fact,  I  address  your  Society  my  letter  for  three  reasons,  viz : 

" '  1st.  To  manifest  my  gratitude. 

" '  2d.  For  this  your  Excellencies  well  know,  that  I  have  a  very  true 
desire  to  associate  myself  with  your  loving  confraternity,  and  to 
participate  in  your  aims  within  the  scope  of  your  excellent  rules, 
because  I  am  disposed  in  this  manner  to  exhibit  my  earnestness. 
And  when  you  shall  make  known  to  me  the  conditions  and  the  obli- 
gations that  will  be  imposed  upon  me,  I  will  faithfully  observe  them.' 

"  Nothing  could  be  more  agreeable  to  our  hearts,  and  we  have  con- 
sidered this  declaration  from  so  illustrious  a  representative  of  the 
Arab  nationality  as  a  glorious  recompense  which  the  Most  High  has 
deigned  to  accord  to  our  labors,  and  glorious  in  its  results  to  prog- 
ress and  civilization.  We  so  judge  because  you  will  be  called,  by 
virtue  of  the  initiation  to  be  conferred  upon  you,  the  apostle  of  the 
great  religion  of  humanity.  It  is  upon  this  account  that  we  proceed 
to  give  you  a  clear  and  precise  account  of  the  engagement  which 
each  one  contracts  in  entering  upon  Freemasonry. 

"  One  word  upon  the  point  of  a  general  view  of  the  institution 
greatly  simplifies  the  question.     We  proceed,  then,  in  the  attempt  to 
demonstrate  to  you  our  point  of  departure,  our  aim,  our  aspirations. 
For  this  reason  we  are  obliged  to  quote  the  first  articles  of  our  Con 
stitotion,  articles  which  comprehend  our  entire  profession  of  faith. 

ARTICLE  FIRST. 

"  The  Order  of  Freemasons  has  for  its  object  beneficence,  the  study 
of  universal  morality,  and  the  practice  of  all  the  virtues. 

"It  has  for  its  foundation-stone  the  existence  of  God,  the  immor- 
tality of  +Ke  soul,  and  the  love  of  humanity. 


588  ABD-EL-KADER. 

"  It  is  composed  of  freemen,  who,  submissive  to  the  laws,  unit* 
themselves  into  a  Society  governed  by  general  and  particular  stat- 
utes. 

ABTICLE   SECOND. 

"Freemasonry  occupies  not  herself  with  the  various  religions 
spread  throughout  the  world,  nor  the  constitutions  of  different  coun- 
tries. Having  her  place  in  the  sphere  of  ideas,  she  respects  the  re- 
ligious faith  and  the  political  sympathies  of  all  her  members.  And 
so  at  her  meetings  all  discussion  upon  such  subjects  is  formally  in- 
terdicted. 

ARTICLE   THIRD. 

"  Freemasonry  ever  maintains  her  ancient  device,  liberty,  equal- 
ity, fraternity ;  but  she  reminds  her  members  that,  walking  in  the 
domain  of  ideas,  one  of  their  first  duties  as  Masons  and  as  citizens 
is  to  respect  and  to  observe  the  laws  of  the  country  in  which  they 
live. 

ARTICLE   FOURTH. 

"  Freemasonry,  considering  the  obligation  to  labor  as  one  of  the 
imperious  laws  of  humanity,  imposes  it  upon  each  one,  according  to 
his  strength,  and  consequently  proscribes  voluntary  idleness. 

"  This,  then,  is  the  essence  of  the  Masonic  code,  and  it  is  upon 
condition  of  practising  these  principles  that  we  share  the  radiation 
of  Masonry  with  modern  society,  and  the  good  which  she  calls  forth 
and  produces. 

"  "We  essay,  then,  to  develop  these  principles  according  as  we  compre- 
hend them,  and  as  we  have  the  agreeable  conviction  that  you,  your- 
self, thrice  illustrious  Emir,  comprehend  them. 

"  Our  Society  has  for  its  object  beneficence,  the  study  of  morality, 
and  the  practice  of  all  the  virtues.  Upon  this  subject  we  have  no 
explanation  to  give  you.  Your  acts  have  proved  that  this  section 
concerns  you,  and  that  it  was  written  concerning  you.  Upon  this  head, 
then,  you  have  already  performed  an  integral  part  of  Freemasonry. 

"  She  has  for  her  foundation-stone  the  existence  of  God,  the  im- 
mortality of  the  soul,  and  the  love  of  humanity.  A  scrupulous  ob- 
server of  the  Koran,  the  first  two  points  are  likewise  the  basis  of 
your  religion.  Here  again  you  have  a  new  communion  of  ideas  wit! 
us.  As  to  the  love  of  humanity,  you  have  given  proofs  of  a  sort  tl 


ABD-EL-KADER.  589 

leave  no  room  for  doubt.  As  to  the  third  article,  it  is  here  that 
all  our  Institution  discloses  herself  and  the  very  solid  foundation 
upon  which  she  rests. 

"  Freemasonry  has  no  regard  to  the  diversity  of  rites.  She  admits 
to  her  breast  all  those  who  have  faith  in  the  Creator  of  all  things, 
under  whatever  name  they  may  invoke  Him.  She  inscribes  on  her 
banner  the  word  "  Tolerance,"  and  look  how  she  explains  it !  This 
tolerance  is  not  a  systematic  indifference  to  all  dogmas,  but  a  very 
bright  manifestation  of  respect  for  free  will,  for  free  examination,  for 
the  convictions  based  either  upon  the  result  of  scientific  researches, 
or,  still  more,  upon  the  interior  convictions  of  the  conscience.  As, 
therefore,  in  exacting  so  much  of  honor  and  integrity  from  her  mem- 
bers, she  respects  the  religious  faith  and  political  sympathies  of  each 
one,  so  therefore  she  forbids  all  discussion  upon  these  matters -at  her 
meetings. 

"  For  her  device  she  maintains  Liberty,  Equality,  Fraternity :  Lib- 
erty of  thought  and  of  examination  before  all :  Liberty  of  action 
according  to  the  eternal  laws  of  nature,  subordinate  to  the  laws  of 
justice,  primordial  and  social.  Equality,  as  to  the  moral,  for  the 
progressive  instruction  and  education  of  the  masses ;  as  to  the  phys- 
ical, for  the  realization  of  a  general,  relative  well-being,  the  fruit  of 
common  toil.  Fraternity,  the  love  of  each  one  for  the  others — a  sen- 
timent by  which  all  live  in  one  alone — who  make  of  all  lives  one 
single  life,  who  mingle  all  efforts  in  one  sole  and  supreme  effort,  have 
for  their  aim  to  attain  to  the  distribution  of  one  equal  sum  of  hap- 
piness to  each  member  of  the  human  family. 

"  Freemasonry  prescribes  labor.  But,  far  from  considering  it  a 
punishment,  she  esteems  it  an  honorable  and  sacred  obligation, 
because,  in  her  eyes,  labor  is  the  basis  of  society.  It  conduces  to  the 
physical  development  of  everything.  It  gives  to  man  the  perfection 
of  his  physical  force,  the  perfection  of  his  mind.  It  conduces  to  the 
amelioration  of  the  condition  of  humanity,  since  everything  in  this 
world  is  the  fruit  of  individual  labor,  that,  by  a  providential  dispen- 
sation, forms  the  sum  of  social  good. 

"  This  is  a  summary  exposition  of  our  principles.  A  complete  ex- 
position, thrice  illustrious  Emir,  must  progress  with  the  degrees 
which  you  will  receive.  It  is  sufficient  to  prove  to  you  that  Free- 
masonry is  a  work  of  edification,  of  law,  and  of  justice,  and  that  its 
means  of  action  are  love,  beneficence,  the  study  of  the  virtues,  and 
Df  good.  It  is  very  natural,  then,  that  knowing  what  you  desire, 


590  ABD-EL-KADEB. 

knowing  well  how  much  you  can  do  to  co-operate  with  us  in  oui 
aims,  we  have  read  with  profound  interest  the  request  yon  have 
made  to  us.  It  seems  to  us — and  our  hope  gives  point  to  our  under- 
standing— it  seems  to  us  that  through  you  the  Orient  may  be  sum- 
moned to  a  moral  regeneration ;  that,  through  you,  Freemasonry  may 
be  restored  to  the  places  where  she  had  her  cradle ;  the  work  of  in- 
tellectual emancipation,  already  so  gloriously  commenced  in  these 
latter  times,  over  the  marches  of  the  throne  of  Persia. 

"  One  great  obstacle,  caused  by  your  living  so  far  from  us,  seemed, 
at  first,  to  oppose  itself  to  the  realization  of  your  desire,  which  is 
equally  our  own.  Masonic  initiation,  symbolized  by  the  ceremonies 
and  emblems  of  a  moral  and  philosophical  signification,  must  neces- 
sarily be  done  in  a  manner  entirely  personal,  in  order  that  the  ini- 
tiate, by  his  replies  to  the  queries  propounded  to  him,  may  open  his 
heart  to  those  who  are  his  judges  before  they  become  his  brothers, 
and  permit  them  to  penetrate  even  to  the  lowest  depths  of  his 
thought,  even  to  the  most  secret  recesses  of  his  soul. 

"This  condition,  essential,  but  impossible  to  perform  at  this  mo- 
ment, we  have  obtained  authority,  in  your  case,  to  dispense  with,  and 
in  its  place  have  sent  you  a  request  to  furnish,  in  writing,  your  opin- 
ion upon  the  manner  in  which  you  understand  and  interpret  these 
three  fundamental  questions,  given  to  each  neophyte  of  Freemasonry. 
The  three  questions  are  : 

"  1.  What  are  the  duties  of  a  man  toward  God  ? 

"2.  What  to  his  fellow-men  ? 

"3.  What  to  himself? 
With  your  reply  to  these  three  questions  we  wish  that  you  give  us, 
as  corollary,  your  ideas 

u  4.  As  to  the  immortality  of  the  soul ; 

"5.  As  to  the  equality  of  the  human  races  in  the  eyes  of  God; 

"  6.  As  to  the  manner  in  which  you  understand  the  tolerance  of 
our  fraternity. 

"  Concerning  these,  thrice  illustrious  Emir,  you  are  requested  to. 
give  the  result  of  your  mature  reflections,  which  will  conform,  we 
doubt  not,  to  that  which  we  expect  of  you. 

"  This  formality  being  complied  with,  it  will  remain  that  you 
direct  to  us  your  TESTAMENT.  This  word  will  surprise  you,  and  we 
hasten  to  explain  to  you  the  extent  of  its  application.  The  candi- 
date, consenting  to  submit  to  the  proofs  of  his  initiation,  is  at  first 
introduced  into  a  gloomy  place,  representing  night,  far  away  from 


ABD-EL-KADEB.  59} 

the  noiso  of  men  and  from  the  light  of  day ;  where,  written  npon  the 
walls,  are  inscriptions  which  recall  the  vanity  of  human  greatness  and 
the  nothingness  of  life.  In  the  presence  of  a  skeleton,  alone,  he  ii 
reminded  of  his  own  death.  Then  he  discovers,  before  him  upon  a  table, 
a  paper,  where  are  written  the  first  three  questions  which  we  pro- 
pounded above,  and  to  which  he  will  reply,  in  writing.  Below  these 
questions  he  will  find  a  gap,  indicating  the  word  TESTAMENT,  whici 
he  must  also  fill  up.  By  this  word  we  would  have  him  understand 
that  his  entry  into  Masonry  is  the  death  of  worldly  egotism,  that 
world  of  "  everybody  for  himself,"  and  like  the  duties  of  the  family, 
he  ought,  in  this  important  moment,  to  remember  the  misfortune! 
which  we  alleviate  at  all  times,  and  hasten  to  relieve  them. 

"  To  resume.  We  await  a  clear  and  categorical  reply  to  the  questions 
which  we  present  you ;  and  immediately  upon  the  interval  required 
by  our  rules,  we  will  address  you  a  collection  of  the  different  degrees, 
with  the  instructions  allowed,  and  the  rights  conferred.  As  you  have 
penetrated  in  this  spirit,  you  will  feel  the  necessity  of  propagating 
them  for  the  good  of  humanity.  You  will  call  the  nations  again  to 
light  who  have  slept  in  the  shadow  of  death.  You  will  revive  in  them 
the  sacred  fire,  and  invite  them  to  the  grand  work  of  universal  frater- 
nity. 

"  The  blessing  of  God  attend  you,  because  you  are  his  true  apostla 
We  rejoice  in  this,  because,  through  you,  his  work  shall  increase  and 
multiply  with  the  majesty  of  Lebanon's  cedar,  with  the  perfume  of 
Sharon's  rose ;  and,  through  your  grace  and  glorious  efforts,  future 
generations  shall  relish  in  peace  the  fruits  of  the  Tree  of  Life ! 

"  That  the  Most  High  may  deign  to  listen  favorably  to  us  in  spread 
ing  all  his  benedictions  over  you,  is,  most  illustrious  Emir,  the  most 
ardent  wish  of  your  devoted  Brothers, 

"  THE  MASONS  OP  LODGE  HENRI  IV. 

Brother  Laverriere  continued,  by  reading  the  reply  of  the  Emir  it 
the  following  letter : 

"  Praise  to  God  alone. 

"  To  the  illustrious  Seigniors  and  sagacious  Directors,  to  all  Free. 
masons  both  in  general  and  particular,  Chief  of  the  Lodge  Henri  IV. 
Your  letter  has  reached  me,  and  your  discourse  has  honored  me. 
cannot  express  my  joy.    I  reply  succinctly,  according  to  the 
fetor's  version  of  your  letter,  without  knowing  whether  this  rende 
is  conformable  to  your  intentions. 

"First  Question.  What  are  a  man's  duties  toward  God  ?    Keply.  & 


592  ABD-EL-KADER. 

man  ought  to  honor  the  Most  High  God,  to  love  him,  to  hasten  to 
do  that  which  is  agreeable  to  him,  to  draw  near  to  him,  to  model 
himself  upon  the  Divine  attributes !  Pity,  pardon,  protection,  gen- 
erosity, science,  justice,  beneficence,  etc.,  shall  attend  upon  these 
actions ;  to  strive  to  do  the  Divine  will ;  to  resign  himself  to  his 
commandments ;  to  delight  himself  in  his  decrees ;  to  support  his  trial? 
with  patience ;  and  as  no  one  can  oppose  that  which  he  has  established, 
to  be  convinced  that  nought  but  good  is  performed  by  this  God,  who  is 
the  Most  High,  the  One  God,  and  who  has  no  associate  in  the  creation. 

"Second  Question.  What  are  a  man's  duties  toward  his  fellow-men  ? 
Answer.  Whatever  presents  itself  in  the  way  of  good  counsels  and 
directions  to  the  advantage  of  the  world  and  each  other ;  whatever 
will  avail  them  in  this,  in  instructing  the  ignorant,  and  warning  the 
indifferent,  in  protecting  them,  in  respecting  the  great  without  envy- 
ing them,  in  compassionating  the  humble  and  providing  for  their 
wants ;  in  holding  before  them  useful  things,  and  withdrawing  from 
them  evil  ones.  All  these  laws  rest  upon  two  foundations ;  the  first 
is  to  glorify  God,  the  second  to  have  compassion  upon  his  creatures. 
A  man  should  consider  that  his  soul  and  those  of  others  are  of  the 
selfsame  origin  ;  whatever  diversity  may  appear  is  but  the  envelope 
and  the  exterior ;  because  the  entire  soul  proceeds  from  an  entire 
spirit,  which,  as  Eve  proceeded  from  Adam,  is  the  origin  of  all 
souls.  The  soul  is  one,  not  many.  The  multiplicity  is  not  as  in  the 
coverings  by  which  she  arrays  herself  and  in  the  forms  by  which  she 
shines.  It  is  that  the  bodies  are  obscure  houses,  dark  regions,  which, 
when  the  lights  of  the  entire  soul  envelop  them,  shine  and  glitter 
by  the  lights  which  overflow  them.  It  is  so  also  that  the  places 
enveloped  by  the  light  of  the  sun  glitter,  although  the  light  of  that 
star  may  be  one  and  not  many.  The  disk  of  the  sun  is  single ;  it 
is  up  there  its  essence.  It  follows  that  the  light  which  emanates 
clearly  from  many  places,  so  multiply  themselves  for  radiation. 

"  This  multiplicity  comes  from  the  different  sides  of  bright  places, 
and  not  from  the  side  of  the  sun,  which,  in  its  essence,  changes  not ; 
it  is  the  same  sun.  The  light  which  is  in  Syria  is  no  other  than  the 
light  of  France.  So  the  vestment  of  souls  is  one ;  it  shines  in  the 
exterior  parts,  and  the  multiplicity  discovers  itself  in  those  parts,  and 
not  in  that  which  enlightens  them.  It  is  the  same  thing  with 
numbers ;  they  multiply  themselves  by  one  of  the  units,  the  dozens, 
the  hundreds,  the  thousands.  Each  step  in  these  classes  of  numbers 
8  as  unity ;  because,  for  example,  two — it  is  not  one  and  one  which 


ABD-EL-KADER.  593 

combined,  form  two ;  it  is  not  the  repetition  of  one  and  one.  It  is  the 
same  with  all  the  degrees  of  numbers  to  infinity;  they  all  reduce 
themselves  from  unity;  they  are  numbers;  but  unity  is  always  one. 

"Another  comparison.  The  entire  soul  is  as  the  centre  of  a  circle ; 
particular  souls  are  the  circle.  The  circle,  when  entire,  is  formed  of 
lines  and  of  points  joined  the  one  to  the  others.  The  central  point 
is  directed  to  all  the  points  of  the  circle,  and  each  point  of  the  circle 
is  in  view  of  the  central  point,  with  relation  to  its  isolation  and  from 
its  opposition  from  this  central  point,  which  is  also  surrounded  by  all 
the  points.  Therefore  it  is  good  for  a  man  to  love  his  own  person 
("his  essence)  in  others  besides  himself.* 

''Third  Question.  What  are  a  man's  duties  to  himself  ?  Reply.  He 
ought  to  purify  himself,  to  correct  every  vice,  and  to  embellish  and 
adorn  himself  with  virtues  and  merits.  Though  these  merits  are 
numerous,  they  can  be  reduced  to  four  principles,  which,  seized  and 
harmonized,  comprise  them  all.  They  are — science,  courage,  passion, 
and  justice,  which  lies  within  the  other  three.  The  harmonization 
and  goodness  of  science  consists  in  that  which  comes  through  her  to 
seize  upon  the  difference  between  sincerity  and.  falsehood  in  words, 
between  verity  and  falsity  in  opinions,  in  the  beauty  and  the  homeli- 
ness of  actions.  As  science  is  harmonized,  balanced,  her  fruit  is  wis- 
dom, and  wisdom  is  the  highest  merit.  The  harmonization  of  cour- 
age is  to  refrain,  and  to  abate  within  the  limit  traced  by  wisdom. 
It  is  passion  placing  itself  under  the  command  of  wisdom,  that  is  to 
say,  of  reason  and  the  divine  laws.  Justice  is  the  curbing  of  passion 
and  of  courage ;  the  brave  ought  to  harmonize  this.  On  the  one  hand 
is  temerity,  on  the  other  cowardice,  feebleness.  The  two  extremes 
are  blamable. 

"  The  harmonization  of  science  is  wisdom.  It  is  in  excess  when  ita 
possessor  uses  it  to  deceive  men.  Then  it  is  entitled  cunning,  deceit. 
As  she  is  deficient,  it  is  entitled  ignorance.  The  two  are  blamable. 

"As  to  justice,  she  is  charged  to  direct  passion  and  courage  conform- 
ably to  wisdom.  Another  duty  man  owes  to  himself  is  to  observe  the 
laws  applicable  to  his  physical  system,  because  the  body  is  a  portion 
of  the  world  of  creation  and  of  destruction.  The  body  claims  mate- 
rial attention,  nourishment,  drink,  clothing,  sexual  union.  It  was 
created  for  a  serious  and  useful  purpose,  and  joined  to  the  soul  by  the 

*  The  French  translator  says  in  a  note,  that  the  philosophical  nature  of  this  letter 
makes  its  translation  very  difficult.  So  I  have  found  it. 

38 


594  ABD-EL-KAD3R. 

wisest  direction.  When  the  soul  took  this  direction,  the  obscurity 
of  nature  enwrapped  her,  and  she  required  science  and  knowledge. 
It  is  necessary,  then,  that  it  should  strive  to  find  and  seize  all  those 
things  which  God  sends  upon  earth,  as  a  means  of  giving  strength 
to  body  and  mind.  Entirely  neglecting  the  body  and  exposing  it  to 
death,  is  a  great  sin,  as  opposing  the  Creator,  and  acting  contrary  to 
wisdom.  This  is  the  Most  High. 

"  As  to  the  immortality  of  the  soul,  reason  and  the  divine  laws 
agree  upon  this  subject,  because  death  is  corruption  or  separation  ;  and 
corruption  is  one  of  the  attributes  of  the  body.  Quitting  one  form, 
they  assume  another,  as  the  water  when  it  changes  to  vapor,  as  the 
plant  when  it  becomes  earth,  as  the  earth  when  it  becomes  a  plant. 
As  to  that  which  is  not  the  body,  and  is  not  needed  to  strengthen  or 
perpetuate  the  body,  we  cannot  conceive  of  its  corruption.  The 
soul  is  not  a  body,  nor  a  chance  ;  she  cannot  be  divided,  she  cannot 
be  diminished,  she  inheres  not  in  one  thing  or  one  place.  Not  one 
of  the  qualities  of  the  body  is  assigned  to  her.  The  soul  is  a  spiritual 
essence  without  composition,  and  that  which  is  not  composed  neither 
dies  nor  ends.  The  spiritual  is  not  submissive  to  time,  and  that 
which  is  not  submissive  to  time,  cannot  change.  Therefore,  the  soul 
is  immortal. 

"  Fourtli  Question.  Are  all  men  equal  before  God  ?  Answer.  In 
that  which  relates  to  the  essence,  which  joins  all  men  to  the  human 
race,  we  have  said  they  are  equal  and  they  are  one,  although  their 
investments,  forms,  and  names  are  many.  So  is  one  the  quality 
white  or  whiteness  in  clothing,  or  a  precious  stone,  or  paper,  flour, 
or  paint  Truly  the  whiteness  appears  one,  in  the  paper  as  in  the 
precious  stone.  It  is  the  same  of  the  ligneous  quality  in  a  bit  of 
wood,  flesh,  a  coffin,  a  carriage,  and  other  material  objects. 

"  As  to  the  equality  of  men  before  God,  under  the  relations  of  con- 
tentment or  discontentment,  there  may  be  such  a  thing.  But  reason 
and  the  divine  law  prove  that  the  traitor  and  the  deceiver  are  not  equals 
in  fidelity  and  sincerity.  To  him  who  possesses  the  vices,  to  him  who 
possesses  the  virtues,  to  him  who  seizes  the  goods  of  the  poor,  the 
feeble,  and  the  orphans,  and  dest/oys  their  soul,  and  to  him  who 
gives  them  comfort  in  all  good  things,  and  causes  them  to  live ; — no, 
souls  are  not  equal  in  remuneration  before  God. 

"  For  there  are  four  sorts  of  souls :  1st  Souls  that  by  the  researches 
of  reason  and  the  desire  of  their  heart  succeed  in  understanding  the 
Creator  and  acquiring  the  possession  of  the  truth  of  things,  as  much 


ABD-EL-KADER.  595 

as  is  given  to  man  to  know.  2d.  Those  that  neither  do  nor  struggle 
against  these  researches,  but  possess  the  truth  by  the  grace  of  God. 
The  state  of  these  souls  is  one,  blessedness.  3d.  Those  ignorant  souls, 
which  by  habit  follow  the  contrary,  opposing  themselves  to  all  true 
researches.  4th.  Those  unblest  spirits,  who  prefer  to  oppose  the  true 
reason  of  things,  and  persevere  continually  in  evil.  The  souls  of 
this  class  are  lost. 

"Fifth  Question.  How  cto  you  understand  the  tolerance  of  the  Ma- 
sonic fraternity  ?  Answer.  We  know  that  God  did  not  create  man 
in  vain  and  without  a  design,  because  he  is  wise,  and  makes  nothing 
uselessly;  he  creates  not  alone  to  eat,  to  drink,  to  rejoice,  and  to 
people  the  earth,  but  that  his  creatures,  when  removed  from  this 
earth,  may  live  forever!  The  intention  of  God  in  creation  was  that 
his  creatures  should  be  cognizant  of  his  attributes  and  his  works." 

I  have  copied  more  of  this  most  interesting  document  than  I  really 
have  space  for;  but  it  so  perfectly  opens  the  heart  of  this  great 
philosopher,  that  I  could  not  forbear  to  afford  my  readers  the  privi- 
lege I  have  enjoyed  in  its  perusal. 


POMEGRANATE 


CHAPTEK  XXXIL 

/ 

SUMMING  UP. 

N"  pages  68  and  69,  I  gave  my  itinerary,  showing  that  1  left 
Beyrout,  June  12th,  1868 ;  called  and  spent  a  few  hours  at 
Joppa  on  the  13th,  treating  Governor  Nonreddin  to  a  fare- 
well at  Blattner's  Hotel;  spent  Sunday,  June  14th,  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Suez  Canal  at  Port  Said ;  reached  Alexan- 
dria, June  loth ;  went  to  Cairo  on  the  16th ;  spent  the  17th  at  the 
Great  Pyramid,  of  which  I  give  an  engraving  on  page  70 ;  returned 
to  Alexandria  on  the  18th;  left  on  the  21st;  reached  Brindisi, 
Italy,  the  25th  ;  Paris,  the  28th  ;  London,  the  2d  July ;  left  South- 
ampton, July  7th ;  reached  New  York,  the  18th,  and  Lagrange  on  the 
21st,  where  I  found  my  family  in  perfect  health,  waiting  with  joy  to 
greet  the  wanderer,  after  his  seven  months'  absence. 

From  September,  1868,  to  March,  1872, 1  was  occupied  closely  in 
making  up  this  volume,  while  travelling  and  lecturing  before  lyceums, 
churches,  Sunday-schools,  church  conventions,  colleges  and  semi- 
naries, and  Masonic  lodges,  earnestly  striving  to  develop  the  thought 
that  "  the  HOLT  LAND  is  a  permanent,  satisfactory,  and  divine  testi- 
mony to  the  truth  of  the  HOLY  BOOK."  My  specialty  was  the  exhi- 
bition and  description  of  Holy  Land  objects,  a  species  of  instruction 
extremely  pleasant  and  satisfactory  tp  old  and  young.  In  showing 
that  the  Narrative  of  Jesus  is  true,  these  object-lessons  bear  a  power- 
ful testimony;  and  the  distribution  of  more  than  one  hundred  thou- 
sand such,  through  my  personal  labors,  has  done  its  part,  I  prayer- 
fully hope,  in  counteracting  the  tendency  to  infidelity,  which  is  the 
curse  of  the  times.  A  society,  entitled  TJie  American  Holy  Land 
Exploration,  has  been  formed  upon  the  basis  of  my  labors,  whose 
aims  comprise  the  collection,  description,  and  distribution  of  Holy 
Land  specimens  upon  the  largest  scale. 
In  May,  1869,  a  Masonic  Expedition  was  projected,  to  embark  fro 


PLANS   FOB   A   MASONIC   EXPEDITION.  597 

% 

New  York,  January  10,  1870,  for  the  Holy  Land  and  other  Masonic 
jurisdictions  of  Western  Asia,  Africa,  and  Europe.  It  was  to  be  com-* 
posed  exclusively  of  Master  Masons ;  to  rendezvous  at  London,  Jan- 
uary 25th  ;  Paris,  February  5th ;  Alexandria,  Egypt,  March  1st ;  Bey- 
rout,  Syria,  March  25th ;  and  then  make  a  journey  of  two  months 
among  sacred  places,  disbanding  at  Constantinople  June  15th,  and 
returning  home.  The  specific  aims  of  the  expedition  embraced,  with 
other  things,  an  "  examination  into  the  condition  of  Freemasonry  in 
the  countries  visited,  an  inspection  of  their  rituals  and  forms  of  work, 
an  inquiry  into  their  origin  and  history,  and  particular  observations 
of  those  ancient  societies  in  the  Orient  resembling  Freemasonry." 
The  proposition,  however,  was  not  accepted  by  a  sufficient  number 
of  the  craft  to  justify  its  adoption ;  but  seeds  were  sown  and  ideas 
suggested  which  may  yet  lead  up  to  it. 

Such  a  project  promises  successful  results.  For  the  East  is  per- 
meated with  Masonic  thought.  All  our  emblems  are  there;  our 
traditions  are  there ;  our  covenants  and  penalties,  our  customs,  our 
religious  observances,  our  ceremonies  glow  with  Oriental  light ;  and 
there  is  no  country  in  the  world  where  Freemasonry  promises  such 
harvests  of  useful  results  as  the  Holy  Land  in  particular  and  the 
Turkish  Empire  in  general.  In  this  chapter  of  summing  up  I  must 
briefly  suggest  the  idea,  regretting  that  my  volume  is  too  near  the 
close  for  details. 

MASONIC  EMBLEMS. 

The  abundant  diffusion  throughout  Palestine  of  masonic  emblems, 
and  objects  used  by  Freemasons  as  illustrations  in  their  traditions  and 
moral  inculcations,  is  seen  in  my  lines  under  this  head : 

THE  EMBLEMS  IN  THE  HOLY  LAND. 

North,  South,  East,  West,  and  everywhere, 

O'er  hill  and  dale,  in  holy  earth, 
The  emblems  of  the  Masons  are, 

Where  Masonry  itself  had  birth. 


I  met  them  on  the  stony  hills, 

Where  olives  yield  the  "oil  of  joy; 
I  marked  them  by  the  sunny  rills 

Where  lilies  hang  their  petals  coy ; 
I  found  them  on  swift  Jordan's  shore; 

Upon  the  verge  of  Galilee 
I  read  their  "  quaint  and  curious  lore, 

Those  ancient  types  of  Masonry. 


§98  EMBLEMS   IN  THE  HOLY  LAND. 

Where  vines  upon  Jndea's  fields 

Pour  forth  their  sweet,  refreshing  juice  ; 
Where  Eph mini's  cornland  bounteous  yields 

Its  nourishment  to  human  use ; 
Where  the  tall  cedars  glad  the  sight 

On  high  and  snowy  Lebanon  ; 
And  Hiram's  palm-trees,  strong  and  bright, 

Hold  forth  their  branches  to  the  sun. 

The  almond  taught  me  all  its  lore ; 

On  Joppa's  beach  the  scollop-shell 
Lit  up  the  old  historic  shore 

With  many  a  song  remembered  well ; 
By  Junia's  Bay,  the  broken  shaft 

Recalled  the  fate  of  "him  that  died;" 
And  far  and  near  the  ancient  craft 

Their  checkered  pave  had  scattered  wide; 
The  fair  pomegranate's  scarlet  flower 

Revived  me  in  the  noontide  gleam, 
Flaming  through  many  a  verdant  bower 

That  overhangs  the  murmuring  stream 

In  every  cave  I  saw  the  print 

Of  gravel  marks  and  working  band; 
On  every  hill  the  skilful  dint 

Of  chisel  in  the  working  hand; 
Each  mighty  ashlar  bears  a  trace 

Indelibly  inscribed,  to  show 
That  till  old  time  those  marks  efface 

Freemasons  have  their  work  to  do. 

The  Parian  marble  meets  the  eye 

In  ruined  shrines  and  palaces — 
And  yields  its  sacred  purple  dye, 

The  murex  of  Sidonian  seas  ; 
The  salt  presents  on  Sodom's  shore 

Its  test  of  hospitality, 
As  though  the  patriarch  at  his  door 

Stood  yet,  the  coming  guest  to  spy. 

The  funeral  lamp,  within  each  tomb, 

Speaks  grandly  of  the  ancient  faith, 
And  burns  and  lightens  up  the  gloom 

With  its  own  doctrine,  "  life  in  death  f 
The  acacia  too,  in  bloom  outside, 

Tells  to  the  mouldering  form  within — 
"Not  always  shall  the  dead  abide; 

"  The  morn  will  break,  the  sun  will  shine  I ' 


DISTRICT  GRAND  LODGE  OF  TURKEY.  599 

All  these  I  saw ;  and  by  the  Sea 

Of  Galilee,  upon  a  stone 
Of  wondrous  grace,  appeared  to  me 

The  signet  of  King  Solomon; 
The  gentle  dews  that  on  me  fell 

When  midnight  stars  inspired  the  sky, 
Told  where  the  old  historic  hill 

Of  Hermon  soared  in  majesty. 

'Twas  like  a  vision  thus  to  rove 

Amidst  the  emblems  of  the  Art, 
Which  cheer  the  eye  below,  above, 

And  with  their  wisdom  fill  the  heart 
No  wonder — 'twas  my  frequent  thought 

At  noontide's  stilly  hour  of  ease — 
No  wonder  Tyrian  craftsmen  wrought 

Inspired  by  emblems  such  as  these  I 

THE  DISTRICT  GRAND  LODGE  OF  TURKEY. 

This  organization,  which  comes  nearest  the  American  idea  of  a 
Grand  Lodge  of  any  thing  in  the  East,  is  now  untfer  the  efficient 
care  of  Hon.  John  P.  Brown,  long  associated  with  the  American 
Embassy  at  Constantinople,  whose  portrait  I  give  on  page  464.  His 
patent  is  from  the  Earl  of  Zetland,  Grand  Master  of  England ;  his 
first  exercise  of  Masonic  power  bears  date  Feb.  17th,  1870,  when 
he  was  installed,  and  opened  "  the  District  Grand  Lodge  of  Turkey," 
in  due  form.  He  drafted  a  set  of  by-laws  for  the  government  of  that 
body,  and  expressed  the  belief,  in  his  opening  address,  that  "  Free- 
masonry has  a  wide  field  of  usefulness  in  the  East"  The  lodges 
represented  were  Oriental  No.  687,  of  Constantinople;  Homer  806 
of  Smyrna;  Deutscher  Bund  819,  of  Constantinople;  Bulwer  No. 
891,  of  Constantinople;  La  Victorie  No  896,  of  Smyrna;  Dekrau 
No.  1014,  of  Smyrna;  Areti  No.  1041,  of  Constantinople.  Three 
other  lodges  belonging  to  the  jurisdiction— viz :  St.  John's  952,  Eleu- 
Binian  987,  and  St  George  1015— sent  no  representatives.  At  the  An- 
nual  Communication  of  the  District  Grand  Lodge,  March  17,  1871, 
the  same  seven  lodges  were  represented,  together  with  Sion  Lodge, 
of  Smyrna. 

From  the  printed  proceedings  of  these  two  sessions,  now  before  me, 
I  could  find  it  in  my  heart,  did  space  permit,  to  cull  largely  from 
Brother  Brown's  most  admirable  addresses.  They  have  been  copied 
equally  in  English  and  American  Masonic  journals,  and  have  ex- 


fiOO  FREEMASONRY   IN   EUROPE — ANCIENT  MONEY. 

sited  the  largest  admiration  wherever  read.  His  views  so  broad  and 
commanding,  his  brotherly  charity  so  comprehensive  in  its  grasp,  and 
his  acquaintance  with  the  details  of  Masonic  government  so  minute, 
point  him  out  as  the  man  of  the  times  for  Masonic  extension  and  in- 
culcation in  the  East.  In  1850,  he  was  initiated  in  Scioto  Lodge, 
Chilicothe,  Ohio,  and  by  special  dispensation  received  the  second  and 
third  degrees  the  same  evening.  On  his  return  to  Turkey  in  1851, 
the  brethren  of  Constantinople  made  an  effort  to  organize  a  lodge,  of 
which  he  was  one  of  the  founders.  Thus  the  Oriental  Lodge  No. 
687  came  into  existence.  He  was  first  Master  of  Bulwer  Lodge  No. 
891.  He  received  the  Chapitral  degrees  in  the  Scotch  Chapter  "  This- 
tle of  the  East,"  and  was  nominated  in  1869  District  Grand  Master, 
as  successor  of  Sir  Henry  Bulwer. 

In  the  Turkish  Empire  there  were  at  work  in  1871  the  following 
Lodges,  viz :  English,  17 ;  French,  15 ;  Italian,  8 — 40. 

FREEMASONRY   IN   EUROPE. 

.  I  had  no  opportunities,  going  or  coming,  to  inspect  the  lodge- 
working  in  Europe.  However,  in  the  study  of  Masonry,  I  have 
never  cared  so  much  to  visit  lodges  as  individuals.  An  inquirer 
experienced  in  Masonic  details,  and  knowing  what  questions  to  ask, 
can  gather  more  information  in  an  evening's  cross-examination  of  a 
few  bright  Masons  than  in  visiting  a  score  of  lodges  and  observing 
the  work.  So  we  learn  the  doctrines  and  usages  of  denominations 
more  in  the  pastor's  study  or  the  deacon's  workshop  than  in  a  host 
of  public  exercises.  I  enjoyed  ample  opportunities  in  Paris  and 
London,  during  my  few  days'  stay  at  each  place,  to  get  rehearsals  of 
the  work,  and  to  listen  to  the  peculiar  views  of  Masonry  entertained 
at  those  great  Masonic  centres. 

ANCIENT  MONEY. 

In  this  volume  I  have  given  a  number  of  engravings  of  the  coins 
found  in  excavations  all  through  the  cities  and  villages  of  the  East 
My  space  does  not  permit  me  to  dwell  at  length  upon  a  subject  ad- 
mittedly the  most  interesting  of  all  to  the  student  of  history ;  but 
every  readerpf  this  book  is  informed  that  through  the  operations  of  the 
American  Holy  Land  Exploration,  of  which  the  author  of  this  volume 
is  Secretary,  all  ancient  coins,  either  single  or  in  suits,  can  be  secured 
from  the  abundant  collections  making  for  us  throughout  the  Holy 


THE  ACACIA,   ITS   DELIGHTFUL  FBAGRANCE.  601 

Land.  The  cost  of  bronze  coinage,  ancient  and  reliable,  with  full 
printed  descriptions,  is  brought  by  this  society  within  the  means 
of  all. 

ACACIA. 

On  page  348, 1  give  a  cut  of  the  acacia-tree,  growing  in  ma.  y  por- 
tions of  the  Holy  Land.  The  flowers  of  this  tree  have  an  excellent 
smell.  Osborne  (in  Palestine,  Past  and  Present},  passing  down 
from  Beyrout  to  Tyre  in  the  summer  of  1857,  writes :  "  Over  the 
plain  comes,  with  the  gentle  evening  bveeze,  a  sudden  fragrance  of 
some  blossoms  which  we  have  known  before.  It  seems  wild,  yet,  in 
the  little  round  yellow  furze  blossoms  on  the  long,  delicate-leafed 
branch  we  recognize  the  beautiful  and  fragrant  mimosa  (Mimosa  far- 
nesiana),  which  grows  to  the  height  of  seventeen  or  eighteen  feet" 
This  is  not  strictly  the  Masonic  acacia,  but  the  distinction  between 
them  is  slight. 

THE   SPEIO   OF  ACACIA. 

Lines  written  and  attached  to  a  framed  sprig  of  the  plant  so  sacred 
to  Freemasonry,  by  the  Author : 

It  flourished  in  historic  earth, 

Land  long  and  greatly  sanctified ; 
It  had  its  proud  and  noble  birth 

Among  the  hills  where  Hiram  died: 
It  minds  us  of  Masonic  faith, 
That  knows  no  counterpart  but  death. 

Though  torn  away  from  native  dust, 

And  faded  from  its  mother-tree, 
Its  leaves  still' whisper  "  sacred- trust," 

They  still  impart  love's  mystery : 
They  blend  in  one  all  thoughts  of  them 
"  Who  last  were  at  Jerusalem." 

How  many  graves  these  leaves  embower! 

How  many  forms  they  lie  above ! 
Mingled  with  tears,  affection's  shower, 

And  bursting  sighs,  and  notes  of  love : 
But  oh  !  the  comfort  they  have  given  1 
A  balmy  zephyr,  straight  from  Heaven : 

Telling  of  that  not  distant  day 

When  parted  love  is  joined  again ; 
Bidding  the  storms  of  sorrow  stay, 

Affording  antidote  to  pain : 
Suggesting  an  all-powerful  HAND 
Will  raise  the  dead  and  bid  him  stand. 


MASONIC   DEDICATIONS. 


Soon  will  these  leaves  be  showered  on  thee — 
Thy  months  are  numbered,  every  one ; 

Soon  the  last  solemn  mystery 
Above  thy  coffin  will  be  done : 

Once  more  thy  requiem  will  be  said, 

Though  thou,  in  silence,  will  not  heed. 


So  live,  that  when  these  cassia  leaves 
Shall  blend  with  thy  forgotten  dust, 

Kind  Mother-Earth,  who  all  receives, 
Will  yield,  unchanged,  her  sacred  trust, 

While  angels  lead  thee  to  the  Throne, 

And  GOD,  the  MASTER,  claims  his  own. 


MASONIC   DEDICATIONS. 

The  Masonic  craft  of  America  will  fully  justify  me  in  locating 
their  great  names  in  the  old  mother-land  of  Freemasonry  as  I  have 
done  with  so  many,  when  we  recall  the  fact  that  out  of  12,000  Ma- 
sonic lodges  in  the  world,  we  have  over  8,000  in  our  Great  Republic. 
Well  did  the  secular  prophet  sing: 

"  Westward  the  star  of  empire  takes  its  way  ; 

The  four  first  acts  already  past, 
The  fifth  shall  close  the  drama  of  the  day — 
Time's  noblest  offspring  is  the  last." 

In  addition,  therefore,  to  the  large  number  already  located  in  the 
pages  of  this  volume,  I  connect  with  the  glorious  associations  of 
Acre  the  names  of  ten  American  craftsmen,  viz:  L.  V.  Bierce,  W.  J. 
Law,  M.  J.  Williams,  J.  C.  Gilbert,  W.  M.  Ellison,  J.  H.  Fairchild, 
George  Armstrong,  H.  H.  Hemingway,  Albert  Pike,  Thomas  Bradley. 
With  the  charming  scenery  and  thrilling  histories  of  the  Sea  of 
Galilee,  I  combine  pleasant  memories  of  J.  K.  Hall,  Jacob  L. 
Chase,  S.  B.  Chase,  C.  B.  Thurston,  W.  Bolivar  Smith,  R.  Delos  Pul- 
ford,  Henry  C.  Nutt,  Ray  B.  Griffin,  John  Sherer,  Gabriel  Bouck. 
With  the  great  and  romantic  name  of  Abd-el-Kader  I  conjoin  those 
of  ten  American  Masons  worthy  of  the  relationship,  viz :  Dwight 
Phelps,  Nathan  Dikeman,  Rev.  B.  Eastwood,  E.  S.  Quintard,  Geo. 
L.  Lownds,  E.  H.  Cushing,  C.  H.  Titus,  Enoch  T.  Carson,  Bey.  W.  H. 
Jeffreys,  C.  G.  Wlntersmith. 


GRATEFUL  TESTIMONY— FAREWELL  LINES.  603 

THE  GEATEFUL  TESTIMONY. 
"This  was  a  testimony  in  Israel."— RUTH  IT.  9. 

FAREWELL  LINES  BY  THE   AUTHOR. 

There  is  no  guiding  hand  so  sure  as  His, 

Who  guided  me,  a  weary  pilgrim,  home; 
There  is  no  utterance  so  true  as  this: 

"  Go,  trust  in  God,  and  you  shall  surely  come,  < 

Though  hroad  your  pilgrimage,  across  the  ocean-foam." 

In  all  my  wanderings  I  met  no  harm ; 

I  could  not  go  where  God,  OUR  GOD,  was  not ; 
Though  weak,  I  leaned  on  His  Almighty  arm ; 

Though  ignorant,  on  His  Infinite  thought, 
Which  both  on  nature's  page  and  in  His  Word  is  taught 

You  sent  me,  Craftsmen,  to  the  Holy  Land — 

It  was  my  dream  from  youth  to  manly  age — 
Birthplace  and  cradle  of  our  mystic  Band, 

Whose  charities  adorn  earth's  brightest  page, 
Refuge  of  loving  hearts,  the  Masons'  heritage. 

Receive  now  from  that  Orient-land  the  tale 

Gathered  for  you  on  Lebanon's  snow  hills, 
From  Tyre's  granite  reefs,  from  sad  Gebale, 

From  Joppa's  crowded  slope,  from  Zarthan's  rills, 
And  from  Jerusalem,  the  world's  great  heart  that  fills. 

The  spirit  of  our  .Craft  is  reigning  yet 

Through  every  hill  and  dale  of  Palestine ; 
Strong  hands,  warm  hearts,  great  sympathies  I  met* 

And  interchanged  around  the  ancient  Shrine, 
And  brought  my  wages  thence  of  corn  and  oil  and  wine. 

I  stood  in  silent  awe  beside  the  tomb 

Where  Hiram,  Prince  of  Masons,  has  his  rest; 
Its  covering  is  the  cerulean  dome, 

So  fitting  one  with  Mason-burial  blest; 
His  sepulchre  o'erlooks  his  Tyre  on  the  west 

I  knelt  beneath  the  cedars  old  and  hoar 

That  streak  with  verdure  snowy  Lebanon  ; 
The  mountain  eagles  o'er  the  patriarchs  soar, 

The  thunder-clouds  of  summer  grimly  frown, 
Where  large  and  strong  they  stand,  those  giants  of  renown. 


604  GRATEFUL  TESTIMONY — FAREWELL   LINES. 

I  mused  along  the  bay  from  whence  the  flotes 

Went  Joppa-ward,  in  old  Masonic  days ; 
Its  waters  sing,  as  when  the  Craftsmen's  notes 

Made  the  shores  vocal  with  their  hymns  of  praise; 
And  fervent  notes  and  true  my  grateful  heart  did  raise. 

I  plodded  midst  the  heaps  of  sad  Gebale; 
Of  all  her  glories  not  a  trace  is  found, 
Save  here  and  there  a  relic,  left  to  tell 

The  School  of  Mystic  lore,  the  holy  ground, 
1    Where  Hiram's  matchless  brows  with  laurel  leaves  were  crowned. 

i  ofimbed  the  hill  of  Joppa,  at  whose  foot 

The  unceasing  tide  of  stormy  waters  beats ; 
Though  raftsmen's  calls  and  gavel-sounds  are  mute, 

The  generous  Ruler  of  the  port  repeats 
Our  SACRED  WORD  in  love,  and  all  true  Craftsmen  greets. 

From  Shiloh's  cap  I  overlooked  the  site 

Of  Hiram's  foundries,  Zeredatha's  plain; 
Beyond,  on  Gilead's  ranges  swelled  the  fight  • 

When  Jephthah  drove  the  invading  force  amain, 
And  Jordan  tinged  her  waves  with  unfraternal  stain. 

Upon  Moriah's  memorable  hill, 

And  in  the  Quarries  'neath  the  city's  hum, 
And  midst  the  murmurs  of  Siloam's  rill, 

And  in  Aceldama's  retired  tomb, 
My  Mason-songs  I  chanted,  fraught  with  grief  and  gloom. 

For  oh,  in  sadness  sits  Jerusalem ! 

Queen  of  the  earth,  in  widow's  weeds  she  lies; 
Shade  of  historic  glory,  low  and  dim, 

Thy  Day-star  gleams  upon  our  eager  eyes ; 
Oh,  that  from  her  decay  loved  Salem  may  arise ! 

Now  homeward  come,  my  Mission  I  return 

To  this  warm  Brotherhood,  dear  Sons  of  Light ; 

My  Testimony  stands — my  work  is  done, 
Yours  be  the  honor,  as  is  just  and  right! 

Be  all  your  jewels  bright,  your  aprons  ever  white. 

Honor  to  those  who  bore  this  generous  part, 

Writing  their  names  upon  the  Holy  Land ! 
Honor  to  every  true  and  loving  heart 

That  makes  Freemasonry  such  matchless  Band, 
And  may  the  Great  I  AM  amongst  you  ever  stand  ! 


ADDITIONAL  NOTES. 

JUNE  1,  1872. 

r  TAKE  advantage  of  the  space  afforded  me  in  this  page,  to  add 
some  facts  that  came  in  too  late  for  insertion  in  the  current  pages. 
The  lamented  decease  of  John  P.  Brown  I  have  recorded  in  a  foot- 
note to  page  464,  and  that  of  Raschid  Pasha,  to  page  546.  The  pres- 
ence at  Washington  at  this  time  of  Richard  Beardsley  Esq.,  United 
States  Consul  at  Jerusalem  (whose  portrait  is  seen  on  page  418), 
will  delay  the  full  organization  of  the  Masonic  Lodge  there  until 
his  return. 


NOUREDDIN  EFFENDI, 

The  Governor  of  Joppa,  whose  portrait  I  give  on  page  256,  is  now 
(June,  1872)  Governor  of  Tripoli,  a  seaport  fifty  miles  north  of 
Beyrout.  The  policy  of  the  Mussulman  Government  is  to  make 
very  frequent  changes  in  officials. 

The  portrait  of  Dr.  Peterman  appears  on  page  385 ;  since  my  visit 
he  has  returned  to  Berlin.  The  Rev.  Dr.  Meshaka,  American  Vice- 
Consul  at  Damascus,  named  on  page  560,  has  recently  deceased,  but 
his  son  Nazif,  a  Masonic  brother,  still  resides  there.  J.  Aug.  John- 
ston, United  States  Consul-General  of  Syria,  and  his  brother,  the  late 
Vice-Consul  at  Jerusalem,  both  named  in  this  volume,  have  resigned 
their  respective  offices,  and  returned  to  America.  They  are  both 
active  members  of  the  American  Society  for  Oriental  Exploration. 

It  was  my  purpose  to  have  labels  attached  to  the  engravings  of 
coins  so  elegantly  and  accr jrately  cut  on  pages  362  and  498 ;  but  this 
was  accidently  omitted.  In  the  present  eddition,  however,  I  have 
named  them,  under  the  head  "  Coin-notes,"  on  pages  189  and  204. 
The  general  interest  in  coin-studies  (numismatics)  demands  that 
every  opportunity  should  be  taken  in  a  work  like  this  to  impart 
light  on  so  important  a  branch  of  Masonic  antiquities. 

Rolla  Floyd,  Esq.,  of  Joppa,  to  whom  I  have  made  several  allu- 
sions in  this  volume,  has  been  acting  as  dragoman  and  collector  of 
the  AMERICAN  HOLT-LAND  EXPLORATION  for  the  last  year.  Trav- 
ellers through  Holy  Land  will  find  it  immensely  to  their  interest 
to  secure  his  counsel  and  personal  aid  in  their  journeys. 


INDEX. 


Arabic,  the  Language,  84, 132,  219,  320. 

411,  561. 

Abd-el-Kader,  94,  547,  573. 
Ashlars,  Great.  139,  182,  449. 
Adonis,  130,  137,  373. 
Acre,  243,  491. 
Adams,  Q.  J.,  266,  300. 
Agriculture,  112,  273,283. 
Abou  Ghosh,  280. 
Acacia,  331,  348. 
Armenians,  391,  393. 
Absolom,  377. 
Arrack,  279,  340,  524. 
Arch  at  Jerusalem,  430. 
Agenda  for  Jerusalem,  473. 
Aqueducts,  455,  501. 

Bronze,  35. 

Beyrout,  74,  208. 

Birds,  94,  120,  339,  342,  845,  346,  347, 

371,  414,  456,  492,  493,  537. 
Blue,  the  Masonic  Color,  100. 
Bazaars,  147,  211,  530,  567. 
Baalbec,  177,  179,466. 
Bay  of  the  Rafts,  191,  194. 
Bethel,  302,  304. 
Bethany,  334,  335,  336. 
Bethphage,  335. 
Bulbul,  347. 
Bees,  416. 

Beardsley,  R.,  386,  418,  471. 
Bay  of  the  Trowel,  78. 
Bay  of  the  Broken  Column,  129. 
Bay  of  the  Square,  88. 
Blindness,  94. 
Bunyan,  John,  318. 
Baptizing,  344,  345. 
Barclay,  J.  T.,  365,428, 453,  470. 
Brown,  John  P.,  464 
Bint  Jebail,  531. 
Buyuruldi,  550. 

Coins:    Engravings,  13,  23,   37,  329, 

363,  382,  481. 
Coin  of  Alexander  Balas,  541. 


Corsica,  45. 

Crotona,  45. 

Columns,  Ancient,  93,  98, 137, 184, 188 

Cemeteries,  146, 332,  380. 

Costumes,  Native,  146,  186. 

Cedars  of  Lebanon,  153, 156. 

Carmel,  Mount,  244,  245. 

Colony,  American,  Joppa,  265. 

Clay  Ground,  286,  288,  312. 

Christ's  Thorn,  348, 351,  535. 

Camp,  Roman,  411. 

Clarke,  Hyde,  50,  52. 

Carpcntras  Stone,  438, 440. 

Coffee,  336,  340. 

Croly,  Description  of  Temple,  450. 

Cawasses,  408,  '192. 

Capernaum,  498,  535. 

Cana  of  Galilee,  500. 

Dedications  of  Noted  Localities,  45, 
46,  47,  56,  59,  60,  61,  62,  64,  66,  83, 
93,  97,  109,  129,  140,  171,  176,  185, 
189,  198,  246,  254,  303,  319,  355,  359, 
465,  497,  508. 

Dogs,  131,  403,  405. 

Druses,  174. 

David  and  Jonathan,  294. 

Dove,  346. 

Damascus,  157,  482,  548,  559. 

Demoniac,  490. 

Dews,  500. 

England,  37. 

Ephesus,  (50. 

Esculapius,  95. 

Eagle,  115,  116. 

Ezel,  the  Stone.  293. 

Ebal  and  Gerizim,  311. 

Epitaphs,  Hebrew,  392. 

Earthquakes,  95,  117,  381,  526,  54C. 

Eunuchs,  221. 

Elijah,  487. 

Flag,  Masonic,  16. 
Freemasonry  in  England,  37. 


INDEX. 


607 


Freemasonry  in  Joppa,  253. 

Smyrna,.  48. 

Jerusalem,  461. 

Beyrout,  212,  215. 

Damascus,  552. 

the  Phoenician  Stone, 
marks  of,  93, 136. 

Sidon,  83. 

Tyre,  101. 

Fishermen,  87,  148. 
Fountains,  92.  121,  274,  335,  352,  378, 

533. 

Funerals,  Native,  96. 
Flowers,  120, 150,  413,  485,  486. 
Fanatics,  121,  333,  419. 
Figs,  131,  495. 
Fisk,  Rev.  Pliny,  205. 
Firman,  89. 
Fuad  Pasha,  571. 

Garibaldi,  45. 
Gazelles,  88,  489. 
Gebal,  67,  135. 
Gobat,  Bishop,  209,  240. 
Glass-making,  241. 
Gates  of  Jerusalem,  viz: 

Damascus  Gate,  Engraving,  866. 

St.    Stephen's    Gate,    Engraving, 
373. 

Joppa  Gate,  Engraving,  382. 
Godfrey  de  Bouillon,  146,  401. 
Gethscmane,  322,  370,  416. 
Gihon,  Pools  of,  413. 
Galilee,  Sea  of,  509,  511. 

Horses,  84,  549. 

Hermon,  Mount,  84, 161,  242,  499,  509, 

525,  537. 

Hiram,  Tomb  of,  102, 106,  533. 
Hyssop,  375,  376, 415. 
Housetop,  387. 
Holy  Sepulchre,  389,  390. 
Hercules,  Pillars  of,  44. 
Hallock,  Samuel,  74,  209,  232. 
Hornet,  347. 

Hinges,  Ancient,  Engraving,  370. 
Hattin,  Battle  of,  502,  515. 
Hot  Springs,  513. 

Itinerary  of  the  Author,  68,  596. 
Inscriptions,  Ancient,  197. 
Indolence,  Native,  133,  200,  336. 

Jonah,  Tomb,  78. 

Jackals,  160, 164,  493. 

Joppa,  247,  249,  254. 

Jerusalem,  Heights  and  Distances,  895. 

Engravings,  361,  384. 

Topography,  396. 


Jerusalem,  First  View,  281. 

Street  Scenes,  403. 
References,  834 
Interior  of  House,  894, 
Last  View,  285,  290. 
Siege,  372. 
Explorations,  418. 

Jacob  at  Bethel,  299. 

Jews,  120,  307,  391,  414,  526,  540. 

Jephthah,  315. 

Jordan,  317,  344,  347,  517,  539. 

Jericho,  Road  to,  330. 
Tower,  349. 
Night  on  Housetop,  852. 

Johnson,  J.  Aug.,  212,  437. 

Jacob's  Well,  484,  485. 

Joseph,  the  Patriarch,  488. 

Koran,  8, 223. 
Kanah,  121,  532. 
Kurein  Castle,  446. 

Lodge  on  Atlantic  Steamer,  81. 

in  Great  Quarry,  at  Jerusalem, 
463. 

at  Beyrout,  215. 
Legends,  96,  344,  374,  472. 
Lamartiue,  139, 185. 
Lepers,  274,  486. 
Lottery  at  Shiloh,  823. 

Liban  (Le),  Lodge,  No. ,  216. 

Lily,  486,  538. 
Locusts,  566. 

Muezzins,  121,  456,  492. 

Music,  Native,  144,  162,  333,  854,  871, 

408,  519. 

Missionaries,  American,  230. 
Monitor,  Secret,  219,  296. 
Moriah,  Mount,  original  form,  424, 445. 

Description,  425. 

Southeast  angle,  429. 

Southwest  angle,  426 
Moabite  Stone,  433,  436. 
Metawelies,  98, 106. 
Myths,  Masonic,  137, 198,  872,  446. 
Mosaic  Pavement,  105, 180, 242,  418. 
Monks,  354  407. 

Mohammedan  Religion,  459,  568. 
Miracles  of  Jesus,  516. 

Napoleon  Bonaparte,  44 
Nomenclature  of  Lodges,  100,  117,  1*6, 

185, 188,  246,  254,  303,  808,  819,  855, 

859,  465,  497,  508. 
Nourcddin  Effendi,  253,  257,  258. 
Neby  Mousa,  837. 
Nightingale,  847. 
Nehemiah,  39& 


608 


INDEX. 


Nazif  Pasha,  894. 
Nain,  492. 
Nazareth,  493. 

Oranges,  82,  2GO,  410. 

Olives,  Trees,  Presses,  &c.,  76, 105. 

Olivet,  Mount,  376. 

Poetical  Contributions,  18,  82,  76,  86, 
112,  128,  199,  203,  206, 285,  360,  402, 
597,  605. 

Pythagoras,  45,  245. 

Paros,  46,  47. 

Patraos,  62. 

Palmyra,  177,  185. 

Palm  Trees,  261. 

Pomegranates,  261,  595. 

Paul,  the  Apostle,  45,  64, 100,  247,  383. 

Palestine  Lodge,  No.  415,  215,  415. 

Pastoral  Scenes,  351. 

Peterman,  Rev.  Henry,  385,468. 

Post-offlce,  412. 

Pyramid  of  Cheops,  448,  450,  453. 

Pools  of  Solomon,  454. 

Precipitation,  Mount  of,  494. 

Quarry,  Jerusalem,  462. 

Raschid  Mohammed  Pasha,  Portrait, 
546. 

Raschid  Mohammed  Pasha,  Dedica- 
tion to,  3. 

Raschid  Mohammed  Pasha,  Buyu- 
ruldi,  89. 

Rawson,  A.  L.,  8,  325,  365. 

Rhodes,  63. 

Ravens,  371. 

Robinson,  Dr.  Edward,  134,  448. 

Relic-hunting,  92,  136,  138,  141,  142, 
365,  382. 

Rogers,  E.  T.,  110,  244,  364,  551. 

Shekel,  11. 
Ship,  Ancient,  26. 
Steamship  France,  24. 
Smyrna,  48,  49,  50. 
Sidon,  81. 
Sarepta,  85. 
Sirocco,  99,  211. 


Sunday  Schools,  134. 

Signets,  Ancient,  239. 

Sharon  Plain,  272. 

Shibboleth,  315. 

Shiloh,  321,  323. 

Sea,  Dead,  334, 336,  837,340,  341. 

Snakes,  355,  509. 

Sarcophagus,  103,  108,  369,  531. 

Seals  of  Jerusalem,  391,  392. 

Sea-sickness,  28. 

Sheikhs,  84,  96,  118,  201,  331,  352,  40^ 

491,  570. 

Siloam  Pool,  414. 
Sanios,  60. 

Stone-marks,  314,  337,  456. 
Stars  of  Palestine,  247,  353. 
Sermon,  Saracenic,  475. 
Shunem,  491. 
Saladin,  503. 
Safed,  525. 

Tyre,  71,  91. 
Tadmor.    See  Palmyra,. 
Telegraphy,  119,  263. 
Tribes,  Banners  of,  328. 
Tomb  of  the  Kings,  367. 

Interior  of.  368. 

Plan  of,  368. 

David's,  380. 
Tower  of  David,  381. 
Tripoli,  66. 
Tourists,  132,  134,  200,  204,  831,  388, 

476. 

Tiberias,  498,  510. 
Templars,  Knight,  503. 
Temple  Church,  London,  503. 

University,  Syrian,  234 
Virgin's  Fount,  378. 

Wonders  of  the  World,  47,  56,  60,  170. 
Warren,  Charles,  421,  423,  431. 
Winding  Stairs,  407,  470. 
Women,  Native,  162,  174,212,213,  333, 
334,  350,  351,  352,  353,  356,  492,  569. 
Wolf,  356. 

Zelophehad,  daughters  of,  327. 


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